Play Your Game
by Iland Girl
Summary: It wasn't like I meant to do it. More like I was trying to figure him out. I never meant to fall so deep with him, and I definitely never meant to get tangled in his web. What started as a simple chat at a bar turned into a challenge of who was dominant. "Okay Damon I'll play your game, it's time you met your match." If only I knew what that really meant. Damon x OC
1. Tired of Running

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'Never Too Late' -_Three Days Grace

_**Chapter** 0  
_

_"Tired of Running"_

* * *

__"I'm sorry."

I couldn't help it, after all this time, I was actually going to do it.

I was going to hurt him.

He softly brushed my hair from my face as I cried into his chest. My own feeling like it was tearing apart.

I don't want to die, but if I don't, I'll-

God I don't want to die.

"I'm sorry." I repeated, this time a little more pathetically. This really was my fault, but if I didn't die, they all would. This was my choice, but right now I really wished I hadn't made it. He held me a bit tighter, lifting my chin with his fingers. I looked up and his kissed me softly, shushing me to calm me down, but I couldn't stop the tears.

"Would it be any consolation if I said I never wanted to hurt you?" I asked, begging for some sort of response.

"I know." Yet that sounded so strained, so I bit my lip before leaning up to kiss him again. God I loved him, I loved him so much- why hadn't I said so sooner?

"I love you Damon." I whispered against his lips. "I love you, I love you, I lo-" He kissed me so hard then, like he was trying to smother me. I wished I had said it before, I wished I never started my stupid rules, maybe I could've told him when it wasn't such a horrible time, maybe we both would've been happier.

I was going to die, but Damon, he would have to shoulder the burden. This made me cry again, because I knew, this was cruel to him, and I didn't want to be.

"Shhhh," He cooed, rolling us over and resting on top of me. He cupped my face in my hands, and I tried my best to fake a smile, just for him. I'd do anything if it was for him. "You're alright, you'll be fine."

Before I could argue, the door to the Boarding House flung open, and Damon stood up as the thudding of footsteps got louder. He looked down at me with a harder expression as Elena and Stefan ran in. She took one look at me, at the tears rolling down my face, and she too ran to me, coddled me, and cried with me.

I don't want to die.

"You don't have to do this." Stefan insisted. But I shook my head, because I had chosen to be the martyr, because I didn't want Elena or Stefan or Damon- oh God not Damon- to die. I wanted them to live. So I sucked my feelings back in a forced a smile.

"I'm okay," I said, but Elena pulled back and cried right in front of me. "I can do this, if I do, they'll leave you all alone."

"You don't have to die." Stefan insisted as he looked over to Damon. The dark haired man just looked at the ground now, muscles jumping in his throat.

"I do, I can, and I will." I said hoarsely, because in truth, I didn't want to.

I don't want to die.

That's when Damon looked at me, and full on glared. It looked like that ticking time bomb had finally gone off in him, and he had snapped.

"_No_." He said it so darkly, even my eyes widened. Without a single moment of hesitation, he flung Elena into Stefan and bit his wrist, shoving it to my mouth. I tried to fight, but it didn't work. All I could do was suck on the liquid fire and look into the equally scalding blue eyes.

And just like that.

My suicide mission came to an end.

"_You're not going anywhere_."

What Damon forgot though, was I'm not fit to be a vampire.

I'm not very good at playing this game.

* * *

**Sooooo? I think it's pretty good. Haha. **

**So I'm still futzing around with the storyline, but I hope you guys will like this story a lot, because I've been itching for some sexy vampire stories lately haha. **

**This OC is...going to be interesting, to say the least. She's a lot different than what I'm used to, so I'm still getting used to writing her- please tell me what you think! If I get reviews I will for sure put more chapters! **

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: What do you think is going on in this scene?**


	2. And We All Die A Little Inside

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'Cold Desert' -_Kings of Leon

_**Chapter** 1  
_

_"And We All Die A Little Inside"_

* * *

_I've always found the human race confusing. There are three stages in life we zone in on- your birth, a celebration into this world, your mid-life where you'll no doubt have a crisis, and your death, as you part from this world. _

_Is that healthy though, to think of life as having stages? Is it safe to assume that everything in life is like that? _

_We're born, we get confused, we die- is that the example we want to set for the next generation? Do we want them to be as cynical as we are? I asked my best friend to tell me how she would describe life, and somehow, she summed it up into one word. _

_'Life? It's cruel.' Is the exact wording she used, but how? How can you explain what life is in one sentence, forget one word? It's like saying the moon is round. Yes, it describes one part of it, but there are so many more things in store on that foreign rock, and we're just sitting here thinking it's only round. We can't sit still and let life come to us- no it doesn't work that way- we've got to go out and find it for ourselves. Even in the darkest corners of the world, there is life. Everyone is looking for it, searching for the place some call heaven. That nirvana where nothing is wrong, life is all around us, and we feel so alive that it almost hurts. _

_Sometimes, we just forget what we're looking for, sometimes, we just need to pretend that we're not looking. We need to feed our denial, because the more alive we feel, the more susceptible to pain we become. It's a double edged sword, but in the long run, I know it's worth it. I would rather feel alive, feel humanity coursing through my veins, than sit here and pretend I think nothing of the world. _

_It may be a long climb, out of the grave we dig for ourselves, but isn't it better than dragging someone down to our level? Just so we won't feel alone?_

_I thought so._

"Girly, you aren't writing in your Emo Journal again, are you?" A familiar voice called as she entered the kitchen. I shut the journal, and rolled my eyes at her. Honestly, tell the girl once that it's to help me figure out my thoughts and feelings and- BAM! - I'm Loner Emo Journal Girl. What's worse is that she dubbed me this, and she's my roommate/ best friend. Unfortunately I wasn't going to be getting rid of her, or the nicknames, anytime soon.

"Just because I have a journal and write in it, doesn't mean I'm an Emo Kid, Maria." I said, which was probably for the fiftieth time in the past week alone. She rolled her eyes back at me, before pouring herself some coffee and sitting on the bar stool and sitting across the island from me. I curled my journal under my arm more, before taking a sip of my own caffeine loaded drink.

"God you need to get laid." She said as she gave me a sorrow filled look. I snorted in my cup before swallowing and putting it down.

"Glad to see your faith in my choices is as strong as ever." I said before standing up and going to my room to put my journal away. There was never a need to hide it, Maria wasn't interested in anybody's thoughts and feelings- actually that's a lie, if you're born with a Y chromosome, pretty eyes and muscles, well she'd love to get inside your pretty little head really quickly too.

So as I toss my journal on my bed, I heard a familiar sound.

_'Stranded in this spooky town _

_Stoplights are swaying and the phone lines are down _

_This floor is crackling cold, she took my heart, I think she took my soul _

_With the moon I run far from the carnage of the fiery sun.'_

I grinned when I spotted my phone on the floor near the mess of my bed. Leaping onto the scrambled mess of multi-shaded blue sheets, I reached for my phone and answered with a grin.

"Yo babes."

"_Ash, you're in a good mood." _The deep voice on the other end said with a grin. I giggled a little bit, biting my index finger's nail.

"What can I say? I'm done High School, and I'm an Author_, and_ I have a super sexy boyfriend. Not to mention I have a cute apartment in Georgia. What part of my life isn't perfect right now?" I asked rhetorically. When I heard a short laugh on the other end, I knew I'd made his day too.

_"You still have a certain nosy roommate, Emo_ _Girl." _

"Ugh please don't call me that too, you and Maria hang out too often." I muttered, stretching across my bed a bit. "So what did you call me for in the first place?"

_"To ask you to have my babies of course."_

"Okay Max, seriously, what do you want?" I asked with a giggle, ignoring the heat rushing to my face.

_"I actually wanted to know if you and Maria would come to a party tonight."_

That made me frown, if there was one thing I hated it was being stuffed in a room with smelly bodies and people I didn't know tripping over themselves. I never got why people liked to go to these things, other than to have a drink or two, but otherwise I never understood the rubbing against strangers part. There were a lot of more entertaining things I could do...like watch a plant grow...

Seriously.

_"C'mon Ash,"_ He began when I didn't answer. _"I know you'll have fun!"_

"What makes this one so special?" I asked, rolling onto my back and rubbing my stomach through my shirt.

_"It's my birthday."_

Oh.

Damn, he had me there. Here's the thing about dating somebody new, they have all these little things you've got to remember -like birthdays- and you normally won't find out about it until they can use it against you. Lucky for Max, he was just so damn cute. Cute enough that -despite my rule of keeping distance for the first two months- I was actually thinking of going.

Most relationships were make or break the first few months, and I found that laying it all out there right away was just... stupid. I mean do you really want a complete stranger to know you right away, and when you break up- then what? Somebody knows your secrets, and they can hurt you with it.

It sucks.

So I came up with a rule- if I could stand somebody for two months, I'd start to talk about myself a bit more freely, and if they reciprocated I found that those relationships lasted longer. Maria and I met in college, and after hounding her and studying her, we slowly became friends. Enough to handle each other's complete opposite attitudes to life even. Maria had always been a party goer, big on drinking, looking like a skinny stick, and maintaining her pretty blond hair to perfection. I had to admire her though, despite all the parties and fuck ups during the night, she somehow pulled herself together and got incredible marks in the day time too.

In a way, I was envious.

...

Enough about me, back to reality.

"I guuueeessss I can," Then I smirked, feeling a little adventurous. "But I think I'll need a little bit of...encouragement."

From there, I can guarantee the talk went from PG to rated R in a matter of seconds. Ah, I liked talking to Max, he was always up for something new.

* * *

"I take it back, I'm a coward."

"Lani, you can't be serious!" Maria said while she grabbed me by my scruff. I pouted, not happy whatsoever with her impossible strength. Although I was still stronger, Maria was incredibly strong for her size. She literally yanked me back so hard, I fell back and hit the wall, that's how strong she is.

"Hey! Don't be such a bitch!" I growled, glaring at the petite blond. She never liked when I glared, because my lips usually curled back and I showed my oversized incisors. They weren't huge, just a bit bigger and longer than normal. She used to ask if I was some sort of vampire, so I started drinking red juice often just to spite her. Needless to say she stopped asking, which was when I started talking...

"Sorry, but seriously." Maria started, and when I went to curse at her, she grabbed both of my shoulders. "Ashlan Madison Corral, you of all people should know the values behind being here." She said strictly, but I just gave her a look that said she was insane.

"Wh-" But she cut me off.

"Your virginity is riding on this moment! Don't fuck it before you fuck him!"

"Ria!"

"Besides," She added with a grin. "Think about all the info you could collect for your... book or whatever."

That, unfortunately, got the wheels turning in my head. As an author, I was always thinking up little ways to...develop my characters, make them more real. Teenagers were, unfortunately, what many people read about these days. Whether it be because they miss those days of drama and suffering due to deeply hidden sadomasochistic desires, or they're curious about what could have been their life- I had no idea. The point is, even as a teenager myself of 19, I still had very little experience with the lifestyle personally.

This party _could_ enlighten me...

Damn it, Maria knows me too well.

Shoving her off me, I hesitate as I look to the door to the bar. The place Max had chosen wasn't far from our cheap apartment, but it also meant Maria would hound me to make sure I didn't run back home. Then I looked at her and shrugged, before walking inside. Ignoring her incredulous look -did she really not think that would work?- I gazed around the dark room.

A lot of people were cramped into here, a shit load, but none of them looked bothered. Actually they all looked comfortable, relaxed, drunk. Yep, I hated it already, but I was fascinated, curious even. Here I was in the natural habitat of the young people, yet I didn't even know what I was looking for. How sad, this place sucks already.

Max found me through the crowd, coming up to kiss me. I grinned and gave a flirty look as his arms encircled me, before grabbing him back.

"You made it." He said, sounding a little slurred. I fought my urge to frown- he was already drunk. Instead, I kissed him again, tasting the scotch on his lips.

"You bet, wouldn't miss it for you babe." I said with a toothy grin. He smiled, before leading me through the crowd. I saw where we were going- to a group of guys all talking- so I stopped. He looked to me, not understanding what I was doing. I didn't come here to hang with those asshole friends of his.

"C'mon, come meet my friends." He said, but I had already met his friends. I remembered most of them from High School, most had been bullies picking on innocent kids. Without having to say a word to them, I already hated them, and without having to say anymore words to them than what was said in High School, I could keep hating them.

"I'm gunna grab a drink, meet you there?" I asked, grinning for effect. God he didn't even notice- why am I here again?

Sliding over to the bar, I slid on the stool next to another guy. The bartender looked at me and waited.

"Rum and 7." I said, tossing a bill on the counter. The guy got to work, so I looked around the bar and frowned. A lot of people were getting piss drunk, a lot of people were making out in front of everyone. God people, have some decency, I mean getting smashed is great and all, but in front of everyone?

"You seem tense."

I looked over to the guy next to me, and for the first time I noticed those startling blue eyes. Eyes that locked with my own light steel shade. He was smirking, and from the way he did it, he wasn't a first time contender. I wondered why he was here, Max had told me this was all people he knew, but this guy looked like he didn't fit in Max's pretty picture of life.

This guy was too hot.

"I wouldn't say tense." I said casually, turning back to the bar as the bartender placed my drink in front of me.

"What would you call it then?" He asked, and I knew from the way he quirked his eyes brows and lowered his head- but not his gaze- he was definitely intent on something. Whether it was me, or my answer, I had not clue.

"Disappointment that the world is such a shit hole now." I said, taking a sip of my drink. It was then he gave me a funny look, but I beat him to the punch.

"If you dare call me Broody Emo Girl, I will have to kick your ass." I said, taking a big gulp. "Besides, I'm not brooding over some break up or whatever you think. I'm just- I'm tired of watching people waste away."

"Do explain." He said, getting a bit closer to me. I looked at him and smiled a bit, surprised to find conversation in him. Most would've turned away and called me crazy by now. Looking around the bar, I pointed out a pretty brunette and motioned at her.

"That girl in the blue- she used to be the top of the poll in High School, but she gave it all up, now she's a drug addict and a whore." Then I pointed to the group of guys Max was standing with. "They're not much better, they were assholes to start with, so they don't have a long drop left." Then I turned back to my drink and swallowed. The guy was giving me a hard look, well he wouldn't be the first to think I was crazy.

"Still think you're not Broody Emo Girl?" He asked with a smirk, and I was beginning to think it was a trademark for him.

"Ah, maybe not, but I'm at least Optimistic Broody Emo Girl." I countered, ordering another drink.

"And why is that?" The guy said, leaning even closer to me, so I turned to him and leaned even closer.

"Because, dear stranger, when one hits rock bottom, the only way they can go is u_p_." I said before the bartender came back. I reached for a bill, but the guy slapped one down before I could. Raising a brow, I was about to question him, but he just smirked.

"Consider it payment for the ever so insightful lecture." He said in a very insincere voice, but I just shrugged and grinned.

"Your loss, you realize you're talking to a crazy person, huh?" I countered, sipping my drink. He looked me up and down, before his eyes settled on me again.

"I know, do you have any idea who you're talking to?"

"A serial killer?"

"Hmph, close enough." He said, showing his teeth. I rolled my eyes and got off the bar stool.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you Stranger, but I _really_ gotta go talk to my boyfriend." I said casually, and I saw the hint of annoyance in his looks. He had failed at playing to game, I had won round 1. Hopefully it was a one time match, that would be best. Walking over to Max and his friends, I tried my very hardest not to scowl or glare, despite Max's friends glaring at me. When I got close enough, Max wrapped an arm around my waist and smiled.

"Guys, meet Ashlan, my girl." He said it like I was a piece of property, and I tried my hardest not to glare at him. Be good Ash, it's his birthday after all.

So I stood there, hating every minute of it as I tried to be nice. I faked a smile, and even tried my best not to snip back- well, until one of the guys spoke up.

"Hey guys, you remember the name Corral right? Wasn't she the psycho chick who used to run around with a bat in her hand and scream like an animal?" One guy said, making the others laugh, so I laugh in a very fake way too.

"For the record, it was a tiny little stick, and it was once, but don't worry. I'm sure it looked big compared to some things." I spat back, and a few of the guys laughed at that too. The one guy though, he looked pretty pissed off. I raised my brows quickly, gesturing for him to make his move. He stayed silent, making me grin. I thought so, little punk.

Max noticed the tension, and his grip on my waist tightened as he leaned to whisper into my ear.

"Why don't we get out of here?" He asked, but moved without waiting for my reply. He quickly said goodbye, but the one guy kept glaring at me, I just smirked.

"What are you doing?" Max asked tiredly as we walked out of the bar, and towards the opposite way of my apartment. I didn't say anything about it, instead deciding to answer his question with a shrug.

"Being nice, what about you?" I asked, grinning when he opened his apartment door. It was nicer than mine and Maria's, but I didn't focus for long on that, because he pushed me against the now closed door and smirked. I could smell the alcohol on his breath, and it was really hard not to notice.

"Forgiving my sexy girlfriend." He said before planting another kiss, and I tried hard not to feel uncomfortable. "You said you needed encouragement to go to the party, how about encouragement to get into my bed, hmm?"

Had a total stranger said that, they'd have a lead pipe shoved up their ass in seconds, but it was Max, my boyfriend, I guess he had a right to dirty talk me. Yet still, I could feel myself trembling, maybe Max was too drunk to notice as he lead me by the hand upstairs. He pushed me on the bed and started to kiss my neck, but I panicked slightly.

"Tell me something about you." I blurted out.

"Like?"

"Uh-um your favorite color?"

He stopped then and looked at me, he touched my face and grinned before going back to what he was doing. I honestly just felt awkward, I wasn't nervous about sex, it wasn't a big deal to me, but I felt like it'd be a waste, that Max was just turning out to be just like his friends- a waste. His wast_ed_ state wasn't helping him out though.

So I pushed him off next to me and frowned at him. I felt no initiative to touch him, I didn't even want him to touch me it was like Max was foreign again, and it made me frown. Maybe I didn't know enough about him, maybe I was just being prude, either way. I stood up and straightened my clothes.

"Wait wait." He said as he sat up slowly. "That's it?" He asked, and I shrugged.

"Been real Maxi, but I'm not looking for a lay tonight." I said and tried to get to the door. He slammed it shut when I tried to open it.

"Max-"

"C'mon, we've been dating for two months. I gave you time."

"I didn't want time, I wanted to know you." I spat, so her turned me around and glared at me.

"You wanted to know me? Says the girl who has a two month rule before you even think about sex." He snorted. I frowned, but before I could speak he kept going.

"No you know what Ash, go. Go back to your little hideout, and pretend you aren't attracted to me. Go back and pretend you don't feel something." He sat down and looked at me.

"I'll be right here." He finished.

My lips curled back as I looked at him with disgust. Max really thought so highly of himself now, huh? He managed to stay with me for two months, but I guess I should've known. I really didn't like him- hiding his real personality, giving me space just because he wanted to get in my pants. He didn't care about me, just the hole between my legs.

"I wasn't pretending." I spat, before opening the door and leaving. I flipped open my phone to call Maria, ask her to come meet me at a cafe and talk, but she didn't answer. When I got home, I knew why. From the sounds coming from her room, I didn't want to go in there. So I made some tea, changed into my jammies, curled up to a good book and listened to_ Kings of Leon_ and _Three Days Grace_ all night long.

Little did I know, the morning would be much more interesting than planned.

* * *

**Woot! another chappy!  
**

**Kay guys! Review! Just to let you know this starts before the series does... about a month before...  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: What do you think of Ashlan?  
**


	3. Scared me so bad I laughed

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'Safe and Sound' -_Taylor Swift

_**Chapter** 2  
_

_"Scared me so bad I laughed"_

* * *

_There aren't many days I can say I've stayed up all night and, to top it all off, not feel tired. _

_Then again, most days I found it hard to really get into a book. Maybe it was the author side of me, finding errors and problems with the plot- or characters, or depth of the scenes- but it was really hard for me to pick up a book and read from start to finish. There were very few I ever read from go, simply because it always lacked something. _

_To me, stories were a way of expressing one's self. When you wrote a story, you connect with your characters, you become your characters, and you express your feelings. A story might be about a boy slaying a dragon and being respected by those who never did, but what about that underlying tone? What is the author really telling us- that if you slay a dragon you'll be a hero? No, it's something much more simplistic, something we sometimes forget exists. _

_When I read books like these -about slaying dragons and under dog heroes- I don't even think about what the elements are. I see it as this; the author is speaking about over coming your tough trials. While it seems impossible, it might be worth the fight, when you're down in the dirt, the only way left to go is up. That even the greatest of monsters has a weakness, you just need to be clever enough to find it. When I think of these stories, I think of everyday life, about the dragons we face everyday. How many of us will slay our dragon, how many of us will let it burn us? _

_I think the author is also talking about growing up, about how children are just an add on to family pictures. They are the future, and yet we coddle them and tell them the world is perfect, only for them to get a rude awakening that it's not. Shouldn't we teach them- step by step- that it's not? 'The world is what you make it.'- shouldn't we teach that?_

_Yet we don't, we dare not speak of these tragedies, and when most people read novels, they think 'Are they going to die?' because our lives are so focused on this one factor. Death isn't just a veil, it's a cold iron wall we can't see around, and quite frankly not many of us want to. We forget that although our destination is evident, how we get there makes everything more fulfilling._

_These are things many dare not speak out loud._

Today was one of the few days I actually finished my journal entry before Maria woke up. I suppose the man lying next to her is the one I should thank- he probably wiped her out. So instead of having a miniature fight, I actually walked out of my room, and over to the kitchen. Turning the coffee pot on, I sat down at the island and rested my chin in my palm.

Our home, I had always liked it. It was perfect for us really. The area wasn't too deep into the city for me, but it had a bar and strip mall for Maria. The University wasn't far either, so if I ever decided to finish my English degree, I could. However since I was nineteen and published, I had huge doubts about ever going back.

I hated school too much, too boring for my mind.

The home was pretty much open concept, baby blue walls with white edging, drawings Maria had drawn on the walls in bare spots were white and usually vines or plants. At some point she had wrote our names on the ceiling, saying that because it was so high nobody would ever take it down, and we would be legends someday. I had laughed and called her Chuck Norris, because she insisted our names would stay there because she said so.

Okay there.

I liked the island, mostly because we didn't actually have a dining room, most of our dinners were eaten on it. I loved to sit here and look out the window over the sink, or look down at the grey wood floors and watch the shadows dance across it. To the right of the kitchen was the entrance to the apartment, and across from where I sat I was currently facing the two doors to our bedrooms that sat on an angle at each other, giving us room for closets.

My favorite corner, however, was to the left. Due to Maria's room being so big, and mine being a bit smaller, I had stolen the left corner of the house, with a chair hanging from the ceiling to sit on, a place to set my coffee mug, and tall curtains that covered a window that stretched the entire wall. I loved to sit in that chair with my lap top, and just write about people I saw walking by, make stories about them, pretend I was in their lives- what kind of lives did they live- ah I got off topic. As you can see, I loved that corner a lot. It also had a couch sitting against my room's wall, and a book shelf sat against the thick wall the mad the cove for my corner.

Most of the book there were old, because new books were honestly too boring. I mean really, what's with the vampire craze? Every book I read is about fucking blood sucking hot guys these days! The worse part is they get cuter and cuter... until they're not really vampires, they're just-just...

"Somebody's moody." Maria laughed as she came out. I glared at her and rolled my eyes.

"Thinking about how the world's spiraling into sexual fantasies and lack of creativity these days." I muttered casually, before taking another sip of my coffee.

"You know if you need a little kick of creativity I can always give you some pointers, Optimistic Broody Emo Girl."

Well I'll be damned, Mister Philosophical just walked out of Maria's bedroom. I stared for a second as that smirk rolled onto his face, before snorting into my drink and chugging the hot liquid. Maria and him both go to grab a cup and fill it.

"It's not me who's lacking, it's these fairy wannabe fuckers who sparkle and eat Bambi and brood like they're dying tomorrow!" I said before getting up to make some toast. I stuck two in and the guy raises a brow at me. Maria stepped in though, thank God, no need to explain my insanity.

"Oh she's talking about Twilight, she thinks the author is crazy to have wrote about vampires." The blond said casually, making me roll my eyes.

"They're vampires that _sparkle_! What part of that is menacing?! I tell you, Edward lives in a forest, eats animals, and he sparkles. He is clearly a fairy wannabe."

The guy snorted into his coffee cup, giving me a look then. I could tell my humor went deeper to him, but I didn't question it, and instead turned to my popped toast.

"No to mention the plot sucks."

"You need to be a bit more open about it Lani, I mean the guy's trying not to rip her jugular out, how do you think it's gunna turn out?" Maria countered as the guy sat down and watched us while I buttered and jammed my toast.

"Well let me put it this way, if I was a vampire, I have no doubt the thought of tearing out somebody's jugular would be there, but falling in love with your prey? I'm sorry, not interested in Lima Syndrome. Wanna go make out with a bunny?" I said looking at Maria with a smirk.

"Lani!" She scolded while frowning at me, but I just rolled my eyes.

"I'm just saying, it's too fake for my tastes. If vampires existed in the real world I highly doubt it'd be lollipops and daisies. Actually I think most authors would curl up in a corner from the shock. I highly doubt they're your cute little bunny eating vamps babes." I said grinning over to Maria, who just looked disgusted. Mister Psychologically Imported was grinning at me, as though what I was saying was utterly hilarious. I raised a brow, making him put his cup down.

"You seem pretty set on your beliefs." He said as though it were funny, but I just shrugged.

"You seem pretty set on sitting at my table, got a problem?" I countered, and he gave me the same look he had last night, as though he were calculating me.

"Nothing a little... wrestling couldn't solve." He said, hinting. Maria sat down across from the guy, and I sat between the two. She then frowned and looked at me as I took a bite of my toast.

"Hey, I thought you went to Max's apartment last night?" She asked, and I nodded before quickly swigging some coffee.

"Mm, I did, but he was an ass, so I dumped him." I said it like I was talking about the weather, making Maria hit her head on the counter.

"How graceful." The guy said.

"Isn't she?" I added with a smirk.

"That's how many now?"

"Sixty-five bottles of beers on the wall, sixty-five bottles of beer! Chug one down, look around, find a hot guy to break your fall!" I said with a grin. "Seriously, when I hit zero I'm becoming a nun." I said, glancing at Deeper Meaning Guy. He quirked a brow, but I didn't want to explain, so I instead changed the subject.

"What's your name anyway?" I asked, and of course I got a wicked smirk.

"It is common courtesy to give your name before asking for the handsome man's." He said in a slightly scolding tone, but I snorted back.

"Well I am neither common nor courteous, so have at 'er." I said back, and he looked deep into my eyes then.

"No you are not," Though I didn't know if it was a compliment or not. "It's Damon."

"Ashlan." I grinned back, making Maria clear her throat.

"Don't you have a deadline to meet?" She said, glancing to Damon and then glaring at me. I grinned wickedly when I figured out what she wanted, but boy I was not giving her a second alone with him now.

"Sure," I said, getting up and walking to my corner, but then I paused and spun around. "But I'd really like to get to know Damon first." I said casually as I sat back down. Damon smirked while Maria bashed my head.

"How do you plan to do that Red?" Damon asked with a quirked brow.

"Oh y'know, I was thinking we could go on a date, y'know see if you're mentally stable while we paint the town red, and then we could come back here and mess up my already impossibly messy room. Y'know, do everything Maria _doesn't_ want me to do?" I said, quirking my head at Damon.

"I think I'd rather go to Maria's room, perhaps you could join us?" Damon said, looking deep into my eyes again- wait did his pupils just dilate? He grinned a bit, but I just frowned.

"Max once offered to have my virginity lost in a threesome and he was boyfriend, do you think I'll say yes to you?" I asked, looking to see if he was sane or not. He just gave this weirded out look, like he was trying to solve some huge puzzle, but I stood up and went to my room. Once in there, I flipped on some cleanish clothes and walked back out. Damon had Maria pinned to the kitchen counter, so I instead grabbed a spray bottle filled with water and squirted it at them.

"Bad." I said flatly. "Not on the counter!"

Maria grinned at me, but when she looked back at Damon, she screamed. I didn't realize until a second later that he had me pinned to the wall. Then I saw him, the whites of his eyes so bloody they were black, dark veins creeped to the surface of his skin, and those elongated fangs were stuck out so far that I swear they were an inch long.

I let out a horrid scream as he bit down.

* * *

I jolted up in bed, sweat covering me as I looked around frantically.

What the fuck?!

Did I just dream that? How the Hell could I?! It seemed so-so vivid and real! How could it not be, it was so fucking clear and-and right in front of me. Hi-his eyes were all... Oh my God.

Silently, trying to stop myself from shaking, I stood up and went for the door. Opening it, I peaked outside. It was still dark out, so I tiptoed to Maria's door. It was unlocked, so I quietly turned the latch and prayed it didn't make a noise before pushing the door open.

There, in the bed, was Maria. She was sound asleep, and rather serene looking, but I was more interested in the man next to her. It turned out not to be him, the man from the bar- was his name actually Damon?- but another strange face I didn't know. Gulping quietly, I drifted out of the room and shut the door. Then I made my way to the kitchen and made some coffee. Fetching my journal from my room, I began to write.

_Holy fuck._

_I've never had a dream so surreal. What was that anyway, I've had a lot of nightmares and dreams before, but never have I made up a complete stranger like that! Yet it feels like it should be obvious, my mind must be over tired. These long nights drive me nuts, but I'm actually afraid to go back to sleep. I've dealt with a lot of madness before, but this is just too much. _

_Who was he, and why did it feel like I was being drawn to him? Why did I talk so much around him, feel comfortable talking to Maria around him? Just one random drunk talk in the bar and what? We're buddies now? Who is this guy anyways, is he really named Damon, or did I just make that up in my head? He must stand for something deeper, maybe it's something that's really important.  
_

_Perhaps I thought of the man as a catalyst that just set the ball rolling.  
_

_Only question is, what did he start?  
_

I slammed my journal and went back to my room, got dressed, and walked back out to put my coffee in a travel mug. I needed some air, to think and try to make this into some sort of scene for a story of mine, before I slipped on my shoes and coat and walked outside.

* * *

The thing I liked about walks was you needed to know your destination, but how you get there is completely up to you. You can be creative, or lazy, or adventurous, or crazy. It was completely your choice- well sometimes your feet did the choosing while you were lost in thought.

"We really need to meet in a more civil environment."

I nearly jumped out of my skin at the all too familiar voice. Looking behind me, I noticed Damon- er what's his name- was following me. I stopped, well more like stood stalk still, and watched as he came closer to me. He raised a brow, probably questioning my sanity.

Yet that dream kept playing in my head, because it was all too real.

"Hmph, I'm not a civil person, so good luck with that." I countered, but I grinned. He grinned back, then looked over my head. He was taller than me, about three inches, so it wasn't too hard. Then he looked back down at me.

"What are you doing out here so late? There are a lot of creeps prowling around at this hour." He said with a hinting tone. I wanted to be afraid, but the only thing I felt right now was humor. So I laughed and smiled at him.

"Meaning you?" I asked, and he pretended to clutch his chest.

"Oh that hurt!" He said, which made me laugh, but then I looked at my now empty travel mug, and back up at him.

"Would you like to get some coffee Mister..."

"You can call me Damon, and what can I call you?" He asked slyly, but I was too busy trying to keep myself calm. His name was actually Damon? This had to be coincidence, there was no way it was true, I didn't predict his name, I just...had a lucky guess?

"Ashlan." I said with a small smile. He gave me that trademark smirk, before walking next to me as we tried to find a cafe. By the time we did find one, I was a lot calmer than before. If he was the killer in my dreams, he had a whole half and hour walk to try. Now, at six thirty, we entered a small cafe and ordered some drinks.

"So tell me about yourself Ashlan." Damon said as he leaned against the table. I shrugged, contemplating the continuance of my two month rule, but I figured the only way I'd get anything out of him would be to talk about myself.

Here it goes.

"Twenty questions?" I asked. Damon smirked.

"Shoot."

"Last name?"

"Corral. Siblings?"

"One. Occupation?"

"My apartment," I knew I answered smartly, but with such a straight face it took Damon a second to get it and grin. "Home Town?"

"Not here. Boyfriends?"

"Plenty. Alcohol or drugs?"

"Drugs are weak. Tattoos or piercings hot?"

"Tattoos. GSB?"

"What?"

"Gay, straight, bisexual."

"You didn't just ask me that."

"You didn't just answer it either."

"Straight. Open to BDSM?" He asked, taking a sip of his coffee.

"Only if there's biting." I said, making him gag on his drink and fan his mouth, which made me laugh and him glare. "Twilight or True Blood?"

"True Blood. Your place or mine?"

"Your- hey wait! Whoa back up, you know what True Blood is?" I asked, slightly surprised. He shrugged and grinned.

"Not a clue, just a shot in the dark."

"Wow you're a lucky man."

"How so?"

"I'd've ripped your balls off if you chose Twilight." I said sternly, and he winced as though it had happened before. I patted his hand on the table and grinned.

"It's okay, they'll grow back eventually, I'm sure."

"Yeah, sure." He looked awkward for a moment, before he settled back into his wicked smirk. "You never answered my question."

"What was it again?" I asked, curious. I hadn't been paying attention after I heard True Blood. Who didn't like hot raunchy vamps? If I had to choose a vamp romance, it was them all the way man! To my surprise, Damon leaned across the table and leaned close to me.

"Your place, or mine?"

Oh.

Eheh...

Awkward...

Fuck.

Damn you Two Month Rule!

Leaning back, I smirked to hide how upset I was with my own damn rules, looking him up and down. We needed more gorgeous men like him out there, sweeping sexy ladies like myself off our feet, but I wasn't about to stop. Oh no, I gave chase no matter how tempting it was.

"Aw cute, you think you've got a shot." I said with a smirk. He looked at me, slightly surprised, but then he smirked as well.

"Of course I do, have you seen me lately?" He challenged, leaning back and stretching in his seat, purposefully showing his abs when his shirt road up. Oh god I wonder what it would feel like to run my hands through all those groves. Instead though, I fought against the voices in my head and shrugged with an unimpressed smirk.

"I've seen better on Care Bears."

That got him going, and I grinned while drinking the rest of my coffee.

"However," I began when I put my cup down. "If you're that intent on knowing me, albeit it in a different way, there's this art gallery opening in town tonight-"

"I don't dig art." He said quickly, and I snorted a laugh.

"Neither do I, but I have to host it for a friend, afterwards though, if you want we can go back to your place or mine. And _talk_. I mean only talk."

"You're really going to go into a secluded area with a stranger?" He said with a wry smirk, but I shook my head.

"I've got an idea on what you could do, and trust me, I doubt anything is going to happen." I said smoothly. He raised a brow and grinned.

"Why's that?"

"If you wanted to do something, you would've done it while we were walking, or when I leave, and if you really wanted to do something horrible, I can and will stop you Damon."

"Cocky much?" He said with an unbelieving look, but I just grinned.

"Very."

And so began, the weirdest friendship I would ever have.

Well, not quite yet I suppose.

* * *

**I GOT REVIEWS! I GOT REVIEWS! THANKS GUYS! I really hope I don't disappoint, but I am gunna give you a quick run down of this story.  
**

**So since there isn't much going on in Ashlan's town, they are probably only gunna be there for a few more weeks, probably five chapters...ish? Then I think I'm gunna try to integrate the main story line in with it and tada! A marvelous story was born!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: What do you think of Damon? Is he OOC?  
**


	4. Play with your mind, not your heart

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'Losing Your Memory' -_Ryan Star

_**Chapter** 3  
_

_"Play with your mind, not your heart"_

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Life sucks._

_You probably got that from me calling this a diary entry, but either way, it sucks. Just when I thought I met somebody interesting, he ditches me for some hot blond. Seriously, I was walking out of the art gallery, and there he is in the alley way, pinning the girl to the wall and biting on her neck enough to make her moan. _

_So instead, I walked home and sulked like a five year old. Maybe this was why people read about romance books, obsessed over their looks. They wanted to look strong and confident, because if everybody else believed it, they would too. _

_Well I'm not confident. I know I'm kind of pretty, but everybody seems to have a problem with my attitude, not to mention my enjoyment of being the rough one. Ah well, I think this is why Maria called the moon just round, because delving too deep can make you remember, it can remind you of all the emotions you've felt until then. _

_I must admit, I still feel interested in Damon. I dunno why, but it feels like something, someone, is telling me to get close. Then again, that dream seems to be telling me to stay guarded, that taking risks like this stranger is a very bad idea. _

_So._

_Which should I choose?_

I was having those dreams again.

This time I was in an unfamiliar apartment and somebody was kissing me softly, clouding my vision. When he pulled away, I was looking at Damon, that wicked smirk still on his face. Before I could say anything, he pushed me down onto the bed behind me, and began to kiss me roughly. I liked it, a lot actually. I wasn't the kind to do things half assed, otherwise I'd never do it in the first place. I kissed him back with equal pressure, running my hands over him.

Oh my.

Goodbye two month rule.

I groaned as he pulled away to nibble on my neck, and I moaned softly when he ripped my shirt open and began to attack my body. I sighed as he kissed my bare stomach, my one hand tangled in his hair as the other gripped the head board. He looked up to me as he kissed my stomach, but when he did, I saw it again.

That dark eyed expression with the veins crawling to life around his face. His eyes looked so blue then that it was unreal. Then he grinned, showing me his teeth. His fangs extended, and before I could even blink he'd latched onto my throat. I let out a scream, but he didn't let me go. My arms were pinned beneath me as he tore at my skin, and I could feel the life breaking out of my body and flowing into his.

Somehow, I managed to look past him, and the figure of a woman approached us. She looked down at me and shook her head. Her undeniably familiar face just tsked at me, before she raised her hand and snapped her fingers.

"Wake up."

* * *

When I woke up, my fingers leaped to my throat as I screamed.

Oh my God.

Well, at least I knew who was that was giving me these strange dreams.

I didn't waste time this morning, I wrote in my journal while the coffee was being made, got dressed in jeans and a T shirt, then put my coffee in my travel mug before pulling my coat and boots on and walking out the door. Maria wouldn't be up for a bit, so I figured leaving a note would be useless. I sent her a message anyways, telling her I was off to a friends for the whole day. However, I noticed I had a missed call or two, and I snorted when I saw it was from Damon. For a second I regretted exchanging numbers that night.

Well Mister Psychologically Imported Hot Mess, I'm going to be the stereotypical bitch and ignore you now too. So I shoved my phone back into my pocket before walking through town. The place I was going was outside of town, and would take a solid hour to walk there, and from there it would be an hour long lecture while I bitched back-

Ah, I guess you're wondering what the fuck I'm talking about. Well if you can put two and two together, let's just say for now the person who is giving me these freakish dreams is also the person I'm going to see. An old friend of mine, actually she's more like a mother than anything else, even if she insists she's too young to be my mother.

I'm sorry, but if there's a fifteen year difference, you can most definitely be my mother smarty.

Anyway, I decided not to think about her, or Damon, or Maria, or Max, or even any of my stories while I walked. Walking was always what I liked to do, to just zone out and pretend the world is my own personal story. For just a few minutes, I liked to pretend that nobody else was here, that I was alone and open to the world, ah yes, I liked it that way. Nobody was going to judge me, nobody was going to think I was crazy. It was just me, my thoughts, and the world.

The hour long trip wasn't long enough, for I reached the woods in record time. I came across an old and large building, probably about a century old, that looked a little decrepit. The inside, I knew, was well kept though and looked nothing like outside. It still had the traditional 20th century look, but it was really pretty and clean inside.

I didn't knock on the door, she already knew I was here, so I just walked inside and kicked off my shoes.

"Bella?" I called, looking up the stairs to see if she was there. However a crash signified she was actually in the back of the house. With a good sense to me, I made my way back there, and sure enough, there was Bella, sprawled out beneath a pile of books. Shaking my head, I began to pull the big and heavy books off of her, and helped her up.

"Darling, you really need to sort out your priorities, you can't possibly learn all this in one lifetime." I laughed, looking Bella over as she began to look around her, a little frazzled.

"Says the girl who has the insane goal of writing a best seller of every genre out there." She mocked, making me roll my eyes. Then she looked to the ground and lifted her hands up. The books all began to move then, re-stacking themselves. I sighed, before putting my hands on my hips.

"Y'know, if you can do that, why not use magic to take the book you wanted out in the first place?" I asked, watching as the stack teetered a bit before settling. Bella opened her mouth to argue, before she shut it and stuck out her tongue. I laughed as she glared at me with those chocolate orbs.

"I'm too busy to think that far ahead! I needed the spell to cure aneurisms! I needed to hurry before the frog died and- ah! Oh no!" She ran into another room not filled to the brim with her grimoires and I followed suit at a slower pace. She gazed down to a large toad that was lying on its back, and I raised a brow.

"Um, a little late?" I asked, to which Bella frowned. We weren't on topic yet though, so I decided to try and get her attention.

"Why are you giving me those dreams Bells?" I asked, making her look at me.

"Why did I tell you to break it off with Mason? Why did I tell you not to drink that spiked drink that Adam was going to give you?" She growled a bit as she walked past me and back to her books.

"I know I know, you were trying to protect me, but what could Damon possibly do to me? I mean it's not like he's some all powerful god that can smite me- right?" I added quickly with a hint of worry. Bella only snorted before looking at the necklace on me.

"That thing is what allows me to see what you see, but Ash, I see a horrid monster that you don't." She said when she sat down on the only clear spot- a single chair she used to read. I rolled my eyes and sat on a pile of her books.

"What kind of monster? Would he really turn into that thing you're showing me?" I asked, and she nodded. "Okay witchy woo, what aren't you telling me? How do you know Damon anyway?" I asked with a smirk, to which she frowned.

"He killed my sister." When she said that, my smirk dropped. What? How? "He drained her of every drop of blood she had."

I gulped down a lump in my throat, trying to imagine him doing such a thing. It fit too, but I didn't want to believe it. If I didn't, it was just a story, nothing more, just one big metaphor. Or... something like that, yeah, that's all it is.

"I don't believe you." I said breathlessly, even my body didn't believe me as it tried to suck in the air around me. She gave me a look, but then got up and started walking out of the room. I followed her back to where the dead toad was, eying it as she shuffled through a large dresser. When she finally found what she was looking for, I furrowed my brow. She turned back to me with a small vile of clear liquid, water?

"This extract is from the plant vervain. If you drinks this and he bites you, he will be weak enough for you to run away." She placed the vile in my hand, and I shook my head when I looked at her.

"He-he's not a- he can't be! They- They don't exist!" I hissed out at the end, denial evident in my tone. No wait, it's not denial, because there's no way he's one of those myths. Bella looked deeply into my eyes anyways.

"Just in case. Take a sip now, and if you need more I have plenty." She said, but I just kept shaking my head. "Don't stand there like an idiot, I want you to run back to your apartment, and do _not_ invite him in under any circumstances. Alright Ashi?"

"You really are a wig nut, aren't you?" I snapped, but she just gave a start to that before I turned around and went for the door.

* * *

It wasn't real, it couldn't be.

Yet for some reason, it seemed possible.

There was no evidence though! Just Bella and her wig nut magic tricks. Was there really evidence though? Come to think of it, maybe he was just as much of a psychotic as I was, yep that made more sense. That was the reason I was calling him to meet at his place, because we had something in common, not because I wanted to see if it were true.

Yeah, that's it.

Why was I even doing this? People with an actual brain would just never talk to the guy, they would just walk away and he would probably move on too. Yet I knew, I wanted to know the truth. Maybe it was an author thing, but this felt like one of those situations pulled from those books. The somewhat unstable heroine delves into the mysterious guys secrets, and boom...sparkly vampire...

Or...something like that?

I didn't know whether to be bothered or find it funny that he was in the same apartment building as me. On the top floor though where the grand suite was. I was actually surprised that he had the money for this floor. The apartment was cheap, but this floor was specially built for celebs who wanted to hide away from public eye, only residents knew the truth about the extravagant top floor.

I kicked the door, not wanting my hands to leave their clenched positions in my sweater pockets. He didn't take long to answer the door, and he even did so with that wicked smirk of his. I found myself biting my lip, not sure what to do or say.

"Well hello." Was his response.

The sexiest hello I've ever heard-

Focus Ashlan, focus!

"Hi," I said, before walking into the room when he stepped aside. The place was even more pretty than the last time I saw it. When I stepped inside, I could feel his eyes on me, but I just kept on walking in. "Got anything to drink?" I asked, before making myself comfortable on the leather couch. This place too was open concept with white walls and dark furniture. I liked it, it was nice.

"Of course I do." Damon said smoothly, and I heard the clinking of glass before he came into view with two in his hands. I looked at the dark liquid and paused before looking at him as he sat down on the couch across from me.

"If this is doped, I swear I will cut your balls off." I said, before taking a swig. He gave a wicked sideways smirk again.

"You and I both know we don't have to do that."

Cocky Assed Psychologically Imported Hot Mess of Fury! I rolled my eyes and swallowed the rum before making a noise as though I just remembered something.

"Is that what you said to Blondie?" I asked, and I noticed the smirk on his face hesitate for a second. So I continued. "Y'know, the girl you were ravaging in the alleyway where you said you would meet me?" I quirked a brow, impressed I got to see a flicker of anger cross his features, before that wry smirk came back.

"Oh that, it was just a warm up." He said while drinking his own rum.

"What was I? The main course?"

"Don't be ridiculous," He said, before looking me deeply int he eye. "You were dessert, the best part."

You shit face-

"Ah, well as long as I'm on top things should go smoothly." I said, but I had been referencing to my order on the food chain, not anything actually sexual. It was only after it spilled from my mouth that I realized the innuendo, but decided to roll with it. Damon just smirked, and it was then that I actually remembered that being on top of the food chain- Damon's food chain- wasn't actually a good thing.

"Why'd you really want to see me?" He asked, and I raised a brow. "You don't seem like the type to chase after well, anything."

"Oh you'd be amazed at what chases after me though." I said with a smirk between sips. "I actually wanted to hear your excuse, you'd be amazed at how they differ from each other."

Damon snorted, and I locked eyes with him again.

"You sound like you've heard a lot of excuses." He said before drinking again.

"Oh I have, anywhere from 'My goldfish died' to 'I'm a Vampire'." To that last remark Damon quirked a brow. "Oh I dated this guy who had an obsession with biting, that was his excuse, buuut I doubt it." I said casually while taking a swig.

"Oh? You don't believe him? What if he was telling you the truth?" He inquired.

"I'm sure if he were a vampire, he would've ripped my throat out." I said as casually as I could, despite my heart beating a little harder. Damon nodded as though he believed me, but that made my heart beat even quicker. He smirked when it did- could he hear it? Of course not! Because he's not a-

"You seem pretty obsessed with vampires." He said casually, making me sigh and move my arms as I talked.

"It's not really my thing, I mean I think that some of the legends and mythology around vampires, werewolves, witches, all that jazz, I think it's cool. But not that amazing. However as a writer I sometimes need to go with the floor, y'know, follow the curve? It's the only way to get noticed, if you make a story more impressive that Twilight and True Blood. Vampires are the thing nowadays in literature, God I can't wait until this awfully butchered trend ends." I muttered before sipping from my glass.

In all sincerity, I enjoyed vampire stories, I loved to hear those dark romances with a vampire, but these days the trend had been butchered will a bunch of ridiculous vampire stories to the point that I'm almost hating the genre now. Damon smiled at my frazzled expression, as though extremely amused. I frowned a bit deeper then- did I just openly talk about myself?

Dammit.

"I uh," I began, placing my now empty glass and ice down. "I should get going." I said, before standing up to leave. Damon followed suit, but met me in the middle of the entrance way. I looked up to him, and he looked down to me with a smirk. I went to say something, but he beat me to it.

"You don't have to leave quite yet, if you don't want to."

He then leaned forward slowly, and I remembered my dream from last night, my heart started to race. He smirked a bit as his lips met mine, and I hesitated for a second. What if he was a- not he can't be... there was only one way to prove it though, so I leaned up more and kissed him back. It was all a blur for a second, it felt like electricity was bubbling through any contact we made as his hands went to my waist and mine in his hair. Nobody had kissed me like this before, but I kept insisting I shouldn't enjoy it.

We backed into another room, and my legs hit something and I tumbled back onto his bed. He followed me, kissing me roughly, and I involuntarily moaned, making him smirk as his hands touched my bare stomach. Then, without warning, he yanked my shirt over top my head, and began to kiss my stomach.

It was so much like my dream as I moaned softly with each kiss, my hand tangled into his hair as he looked up at me. I knew what would happen next, but even two dreams couldn't prepare me for the look in his eyes.

That dark looked, I could tell he wanted to devour me, all those veins pulsing rapidly. Before I could shout for him to stop, he pounced on me, and bit down onto my throat. I didn't scream though, for a second later he backed up, looking dizzy.

"Where'd you get vervain...?" Then he fell over onto the floor, so I sat up and looked at him.

"It's true, you're one of them." I whispered, and he looked at me before he close his eyes, groaning.

Run.

My legs told me to move, so I did. I flipped on my shirt and ran like all Hell out of there. I ran so hard that it hurt, and even after I had gotten to Bella's in record time, I still panicked. I ran in the house, and ran right into Bella, and I cried for at least half an hour.

"They're real." I whispered, Bella eying my neck. "Why are they real?!" I cried hoarsely.

So it really was true.

Damon was a vampire.

A very pissed off vampire.

Pissed off at me.

Oh fuck.

* * *

**I GOT REVIEWS! I GOT REVIEWS! THANKS GUYS! Woot! I got more reviews! I'm a happy author right now ;)  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: What do you think Ashlan is going to do now? Will she run? Or confront Damon?  
**


	5. Where We Stand

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'Clocks' -_Coldplay

_**Chapter** 4  
_

_"Where We Stand"_

* * *

"What is this?"

"Remedy, it'll make you feel better."

I chugged the strange oozing green liquid from the mug in front of me, gagging.

"Lie!" I choked out before I begun a coughing fit. Bella slapped my back quickly, but it only proved to make me cough more.

"Well it got your mind off things- oh, whoops." She said as I glared at her.

"What can I do now Bella? I'm fucking done for!" I said as I leaned back in the armchair and curled my knees closer to my chest. Bella smiled at me though, before scurrying out of the room. I raised a brow when she came back with a box and sat down on the chair next to me with the little wooden box in her lap.

"My Mother told me that if someone ever needed protection from the supernatural, I should give them these." She opened the box, but all I saw was jewelery... what?

"I don't..."

"Here, hold out your hand." She said, and I did it when she held up a thick tungsten ring with a link print on the surface. "This was made with vervain in the metal, it will stop Damon from controlling your mind." Then she held up a gold eternity ring. "This ring is a special ring too, my Mother made a single spell imprinted into it, anybody can use it on the supernatural. Just think about making the vessels in his head go 'pop' and it'll happen." From the look I was giving her, she probably had no doubt I questioned her sanity.

"I can't possibly do that!"

"Don't worry, you don't have to be a witch. This ring will channel the energy needed from your body, which is also why you shouldn't use it too much either, it'll wear you down."

"So just think, 'pop'?"

"Yes pop."

Wow.

"What are all of these then?" I asked, sliding on the tungsten to my left middle finger, and the eternity to my ring finger. Bella let me fish through the box, until I picked up one with a pretty blue smooth rock and silver band with vine designs all over it.

"That is Lapis Lazuli, this ring will protect against the sun- but it does look cute on you too." She laughed a little as I slipped it onto my right ring finger.

"Fits like a glove." I muttered, to which Bella smiled.

"It should, it's magic."

I shook my head, and frown slightly.

"How am I going to face? I have to do it now while the sun's up, at night I'm too vulnerable." I said, but Bella looked at me incredulously.

"Stay away! Those are precautions! They aren't weapons! They're for self-defense!"

"Bella if I sit around then he's going to find and kill me, because I know, I know what he is. You can't tell me he wouldn't want to kill me now." She went to argue, but ultimately just shook her head and stood up while closing the box.

"Come with me then, let's get you ready."

* * *

**Damon's POV**

Fuck.

Where the hell did she get vervain?

I couldn't waste time on it though, I had to find and kill her, before she blabbed and I'd have to go on a compulsion streak. That is not what I'd like to do with my eternity. As I stalked down the street, hunting for her, my phone buzzed. Pulling it out, I double checked the name before opening it.

_I want to talk. Cafe. Now._

Two points for bravery, negative fifty for stupidity.

Yet there she sat, in the cafe we had walked to the first morning. She was lucky then, I had my fill the night before, I wasn't in the mood for a kill. She sat in the same spot we had before, and she watched me from when I entered. Oddly enough, I didn't feel like the predator stalking his prey, because she was looking at me with those eyes, those steel eyes that dug under my skin. She pissed me off even more just because of her gaze.

I wanted to kill her so, so badly.

"Thank you for coming." She said curtly as I sat down. There weren't many in the cafe, so I didn't bother to keep it down.

"You're a stupid one for not running." I muttered. Her heartbeat was faster than normal, but she wasn't tense. She knew I couldn't get her in a public place. There weren't many people though- fuck. Just as I thought that, twenty people came in.

"There goes your chance." She said flatly. Oh you are so dead you little bitch. "But if I ran you would track me down and kill me." She added, making me smirk.

"What makes now different?" I demanded, leaning towards her. She licked her lips and leaned towards me as well, this smirk on her face, this cockiness. Well played Miss Corral, but you're dying tonight, one way or another.

"I negotiating," Please, don't make me laugh. "Meaning you and I let our past go, meaning you don't kill me." She ended flatly, dropping the smirk. What was with this girl? Her ability to fake bravery was impressive, I'd give her that, but there was no way she was getting away. I looked around for a moment, checking to see if the place was emptying, but it wasn't. She obviously picked this time because it was so busy.

"How about you walk outside into the alleyway and I snap your neck? Because if you don't I will definitely prolong your torturous hours for days." I said sharply, making her heartbeat rise and lower during a single minute. She sucked in a huge breath and shook her head.

"You don't get it, do you?" She said, and I quirked my brows. "Wow this sucks." She muttered, leaning back in her chair as she looked out the window.

"Don't take it personally honey, you're just the first to get away." I said smoothly, and she looked to me with a quirked brow.

"The first?"

"Yep."

"I deserve a ribbon."

That made me snort before I caught myself. She really was insane, if she and I were having this conversation after I just said I'd snap her neck. She actually smiled at me, yup she's crazy.

"Y'know it's sad, I finally meet somebody funny and they turn out to be a homicidal ass." She muttered, but I heard her perfectly clear. "So anyway, say you don't kill me, what would you do?"

"That would depend, are you good at kneeling?" I asked, smirking at her. Of course she wasn't getting out alive, but why not humor her for a moment?

"About as good as you are." She said casually as she leaned towards me. "But seriously, is there anything I can do to keep you from maiming my gorgeous body?"

I actually thought about it for a second, to kill or not to kill? I already had my fill for the day, but then I remembered what her blood tasted like. It was so sweet and hot, it was like her body was three degrees hotter than any other human out there. It was so smooth and thick too, sliding down my throat.

Oh, I just got an idea.

"If you let me drink your blood, we might have a deal." I offered, maybe she'd be stupid enough to offer me a drink, and I'd just take it all. Instead she looked at me incredulously, shaking her head.

"Seriously? I'm not going to give up my life to become your personal snack machine! God knows if I;d make it past one feeding." She muttered, so she wasn't as dumb as I thought. To my surprise, she stood up. I looked at her, quirking a brow as she walked past me.

"Where are you going?" I asked, making her stop and look at me.

"Away from you and your teeth." She snapped, a few people looking at her before she spun on her heel and walked out. Oh this was just too good to let go of. I stood up and followed her from a distance, and she even took a back way, what a stupid girl.

"Damon Salvatore."

When I turned around, I was greeted by three figures standing in the alleyway beside me. Fuck, these guys were from the last town I ripped apart. I remembered the dude in the middle, his girlfriend painted me a... pretty little picture before. Clearly he didn't enjoy finding her body on his house's floor. That's what you get when you date a human, stupid vampires.

"The one and only." I said, smirking wryly. After that was a bunch of blurs as each came at me from different angles. I dodged one while I attacked another, but the third punch me in the gut and I hit the wall. I groaned as a stake hit my stomach, my blood spilling rapidly.

"That's for Mandy." He growled.

"She enjoyed every minute of it." I spat back, shoving him away and stabbing another in the chest with it. He fell to the ground, and another leaped over his body, taking me to the ground. He punched me a few times in the face, but I managed to throw him off of me quick enough to roll over the other guy stabbing me.

Getting to my feet, the first attacked me, but I dodged and threw the second over my head. He disappeared into the shadows, but the other guy leaped back at me again and punched me so hard my mouth bled. I growled, feeling the blood rush to my face, before jerking my hand forward and yanking his heart from his chest. He only looked down for a second before he too collapsed on the ground.

Taking a second to breathe, I leaned down and breathed deeply. It only lasted a second though, as I felt something being shoved into my side. With a short cry, I was shoved up against the wall, the last guy had reappeared and held a piece of wood above his head. The other stake must've been dipped in vervain, because it was burning like hell.

"I bet you'll see the fiery pits of hell, asshole." He spat in my face, but before I could reply, somebody else did.

"And what will you see?"

The guy screamed, and I looked down at the piece of wood shoved through his chest. He looked back up to me, and I watched in slight confusion as he turned grey before dropping to the floor. He revealed that stupid girl, in all her blood red haired, steel eyed glory. She looked up to me, blood spatter on her face, her heartbeat running wild as she watched me slide down the wall.

She knelt in front of me, gulping.

"Are you alright?" She asked, making me smirk.

"Funny choice of words." I muttered, watching her eye the stake in my side. "Pull it out."

Her eyes snapped to me and she looked at me incredulously.

"I can't reach it, you have to pull it out. Trust me, it'll hurt me more than it'll hurt you." I said matter-of-factually. She took in a sharp breath before crawling to my side and placing her hands on the wood. With one quick jerk, she pulled it out. I sucked in a breath to keep from cursing, and I watched her watch my wound heal.

"Amazing." She said, subconsciously touching my now healed flesh. Then she looked at me and let her hand drop and stood up.

"C'mon, let's get you home." She said, extending her hand. I eyed the pulse in her wrist, and she seemed to notice because she took it back.

"I'd love to, but that stake has vervain on it, I'm not going to be able to get up on my own." I said with a bit of a smirk, even if it was true, I wondered what she would do. She gulped then, and looked at me intently.

"Sorry then Damon, but I can't trust you." She said, but before I could comment, a shooting pain ripped through my skull, and then I blacked out.

* * *

**Ashlan's POV**

I couldn't believed it actually worked.

I take that back, I couldn't believed I carried Damon on my back, in the middle of the night, all the way home.

Wow, I'm a basket case now, aren't I?

As much as I didn't want to give him an aneurism, I had to, because there was no doubt in my mind he wanted to devour me right then and there, literally.

I refused to be a course.

Thankfully Miss Cort on the second floor had connections with the local blood bank, and used most of her refrigerator as storage space whenever they had too much. I managed to sweet talk her into _borrowing a cup of sugar_, but she was so lazy she stayed in her seat and made me get it, so I stole a blood bag too.

When I got back, I poured a decent amount into a mug and heated it up as hot as it would go, and grabbed a straw before walking over to Damon who was lying on the couch. I wasn't sure if her wanted his sheets all dirtied, since his bed was white, but I still had torn off his shirt- it was full of holes anyways- and his shoes as well. He was just kind of lying there, and for a second I thought I had killed him.

Bella had always called me a level headed person, looks like now it had really been put to the test since I could handle this situation with only one mental break down so far.

If Damon tried to kill me again though...

Oh God.

No, no no, don't think that Ashikins! You're safe! Right? Probably not, but let's aim high and pray to whatever deity will listen!

Damon stirred then, giving a groan. I sat on the coffee table by his face and waved the mug in front of him. His nose followed it a bit, his mouth dripping open a little. I shook my head, before guiding the straw to his mouth.

"Drink." I said firmly, and he listened. He gulped it down quickly, and when the last drop was gone, I pulled it away and his eyes opened to look at me. I didn't tense, but I remembered the stake sitting right behind me, and slowly guided me hand to grab it. Good thing too, because a second later I was pinned to one of the walls, Damon snarling in my face with his fangs bared at me.

"You should be dead." He growled.

"So should you, but who do you have to thank for that?" I countered, holding my ground despite my rapid heartbeat. He was so close, a little too close actually. It bothered me that I could feel breath on my face as his veins disappeared from my site. He calmed down a little, eying me closely.

"I could kill you right now." He said lowly, but I tried not to let my fear show.

"Same goes for you."

It was then that he looked down at the wooden stake pressed to his chest, had I wanted, it would've gone through him and that would've been the end.

"Consider us square, hm?" I challenged, making him look back at me, before backing off. He looked at me, quirking a brow, before he walked to his alcohol.

"So I guess this makes you think we're on equal ground now?" He asked as he turned back to me and lifted the drink to his lips. I sighed at this before sitting down on one of the couches.

"Let me total this up; I've kept your secret, spared your life not once but twice, and carried your sorry ass home. Yeah, I think we're square." I said matter-of-factually. Damon looked at me hard, his brow furrowing.

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why did you save me?"

I hesitated at that, what was my answer?

"Honestly," I began, shaking my head. "When I first took off down the back way, I was going to stake you. But, then I saw those guys attack you and- and I just... I thought 'Good, he deserves it. Now nobody will come after me.' and..." I took a deep breath as I watched his gaze drop to the floor, but then pin me down again as I exhaled. "Then I thought, am I really that shallow? Am I really going to let somebody die just because I didn't feel like helping them? I mean, people die all the time, it's nature, but, I wanted to save you."

It was quiet for a moment, and I suddenly felt very awkward. So I leaned back in my seat and shrugged.

"Hey, we can't be losing psychologically unstable neurotics left and right now, can't let us all die off." I muttered, but his gaze was still lingering on me. I knew right then, it was his decision. If I was to live or die. He looked at me sharply, his jaw clenching and un-clenching a bit. Then I involuntarily sucked in some air when he walked towards me. He stood right in front of me, then leaned down and leaned on his arm resting on the backrest behind me. I didn't dare move as he leaned right up into my face, looking me right in the eye.

It was like this for a few second, I watching him and him watching me. I dared not to breathe even as he stayed there too, looking from my eyes, to my lips, and back again.

"You're free to go." He said, and then stood up. I let out a breath, and stood up right away, making it for the door. However, I hesitated when my hand held the knob, and so I turned back to look at him.

"Damon," I said, but then paused. What was I about to say? I wanted to stay- no. I hated him- well not exactly... "Thank you."

Great, of all lame things to say... Still, he nodded, and turned around as I left. Racing to my own apartment, I used the key to get in, before locking the door and sneaking to my bedroom. Maria must've been out, because it was night and her room was quiet. I didn't bother to linger on it though, instead I ran for my journal and began to write.

_Holy fuck. _

_I've never been one to believe in crazy stories. I mean hearing that Bella is a witch was a lot to take in on it's own. Could you believe it though?  
_

_Damon is a vampire.  
_

_A fucking sexy one at that. Which kind of blows, because although he let me go tonight, I have a feeling the danger's not over. Will it ever be over? Should I have just let him get staked in that back way? Would it have been easier on me in the long run? Yet I doubt it, I don't regret saving him, because I really hope we can be friends._

_ Why?_

_ Because he's a lot like me. _

_He's sarcastic and rude and doesn't give a damn what people think about him, and I like it. It's the first real thing I've seen in a very long time. A breath of fresh air I suppose.  
_

_I just really hope Damon doesn't make me regret it._

* * *

**I GOT REVIEWS! I GOT REVIEWS! THANKS GUYS! Woot! I got more reviews! I'm a happy author right now ;) Seriously, I just want to... to write this! It's so much fun!  
**

**I really hope I didn't disappoint with this resolution, because when I think of Ashlan, I think that she does things whole heartedly, quickly, or not at all. She's a very lazy but passionate person, and when she does something, it happens. So I was going to map out her life, but it really consists of her walking around really. Plus we got some Damon POV! Yay!  
**

**Also, I made this chapter like this just because I realized- we haven't gotten to Mystic Falls yet, so if I try to make too many parts to Ash's life, we're never getting there!  
**

**Sound good?  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: Do you think Damon's going to regret telling her? Or enjoy it?  
**


	6. Room Service

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'Hotel Room Service' -_Pitbull

_**Chapter** 5  
_

_"Room Service"_

* * *

_I once wondered.  
_

_Whether the bedtime stories I had read were true.  
_

_I once wondered.  
_

_If my life would be as exciting as all the heroine's in the stories I read as a kid. For the firs ten years of my life, I prayed and I begged to the sky, that it would be as thrilling as those stories, but now? I'm not so sure.  
_

_One on hand, I am more than thrilled to have met him, to have met Damon Salvatore. As tacky as his last name is, don't worry, I mocked him when he told me. He's actually a lot of fun, well when he's not referencing to his vampire nature, everything is fine then.  
_

_On the other hand though, I have no doubt that if I relax, Damon will find a way to rip my throat open, and be done with me.  
_

_It's not fair though, it really isn't. To spend your eternity stealing chances from the mortals. I get frustrated when I think of it that way, that not only Damon, but other vampires out there are probably stealing that light too. I get frustrated because, although I think it's cruel, I also know it's apart of the natural process.  
_

_People are born, they get fucked over by everyone else, and then they die. Simple. Vampires are the exception, they swim against the current, up stream they go and back into the Fountains of Youth. They are the eternal, forever watching people change around them, watching others grow old while they're stuck where they are.  
_

_Sometimes I wonder, do they miss it? This thing called mortality. I refuse to call it humanity, because that word has been molded into another meaning. Humanity is not the act of growing old, nor moving on, or even fighting to survive. Animals grow old, they fight, they kill, and they survive when they must. Does than mean they have humanity? No, humanity to me holds a much different meaning.  
_

_To me, humanity is that ability to swim against the current, not the same as vampires- I mean the flow of everybody else. Humanity is that ability to make your own path, to forge your own future and grasp it with both hands. To me, humanity is the ability to feel so alive, to reach that nirvana that we all miss so deeply even when we say we don't.  
_

_Humanity is what separates us from the animals.  
_

_It's not what makes us the same_.

"Lani! Come use the shower or I'm hogging the bathroom all afternoon!"

I shut my journal and left it on the kitchen counter before heading through my room. Maria and I shared a bathroom that was at the very back of our apartment. You could only access it through our rooms, and it had two sinks, a full bath, and a shower all spanning out with a huge closet between the two entrances.

Looking over to Maria, I noticed she was tapping her foot impatiently, so I just rolled my eyes.

"Where are you going? It's only three." I muttered before stripping and turning on the shower. I grabbed my soaps and supplies from the cupboard before walking into the shower and shutting the door.

"Well unlike a certain published author, I still have school to attend, and it starts today, summer's over chick." She said while probably applying make up. "You know, I think you should've finished your English degree." She added.

"Ugh, no! I'm not going back to a school where that sexist teacher will say how unsuccessful I'll become because I'm a girl and I won't get published." I muttered lowly, remembering the dark days. Sometimes I wanted to storm into that teacher's office and shove my Best Seller in his face, but I couldn't.

"Well if you hadn't entered it under a pen name, maybe we wouldn't be in this mess." She said in her high and mighty tone. I scoffed, and rolling my eyes while applying shampoo and scrubbing my body.

"We?"

"Well duh! When somebody knows a famous author, they're instantly pegged as smart! Guys dig smart chicks these days." She said, making me remember that despite her award winning grades, Maria had kept it on the down low so long that people had started to think of her as stereotypical dumb blonde. I kind of felt bad, buuut I really shouldn't. Instead I laughed.

"Okay babes, whatever you say." I said while rinsing off and climbing out. "Showers all your." I said, pulling a towel out and wrapping myself up. Then I gave Maria a salute before walking back out to the kitchen. I began to pour myself some coffee, looking over to the island. Then I froze, my journal wasn't there. I put my coffee down and looked around.

"Wow, never would've thought you were this deep." He said, and I glared over to him with a frown. Damon sat on the couch, reading _my_ journal. I bit back a growl and stomped over to him, glaring as I held my hand out.

"Give it back you little shit."

"I told you I would comply when you got down on your knees."

"I could always knee you in the crotch?"

"Not quite what I had in mind."

So then I grabbed the book away, and spun around feeling victories. However, as I did so, I slipped and fell into his lap. He leaned back, and I didn't have to turn around to know he was giving his own victories smirk.

"You just can't keep off of me, can you?" He asked rhetorically, but I answered anyways.

"Aw you know me," I began, before turning around and kneeling on the floor with my head on one of his knees. "I just love this view," His eyes traveled to the top of my breasts, making me smirk. "Much like you do, uh?"

Then I got up, and he continued to watch me with those daring eyes of his. Damn why do people have to be born with such amazing eyes?! I mean really, those should be illegal contraband!

"Lani do you think you could- oh hey baby." Maria said as she walked into the room, falling into Damon's lap and kissing him. I rolled my eyes and laughed a little when Damon put on this sweet and innocent face. I wonder what Maria would think if she knew he wanted to eat her, and not the way she might be accustomed to. Walking back over to the island, I prepared my coffee before sitting down and drinking it, my journal safely tucked into my arm.

I could still remember the first day quite clearly.

_Maria had come home while I had stayed in, and at first I just saw her when I was making stir fry- my go to munchies- when she came through the door._

_"Hey Mars, want any stir fry?" I asked, putting the food on a bed of rice before looking over at her completely._

_"Sure, baby, are you hungry?" She asked, looking over to the door. My brow furrowed- was this the guy she'd actually dated two nights in a row? I had to meet him! However, when I looked over, my heart almost stopped._

_"Sure honey." Damon said in this sickly sweet voice. He smirked that ever sexy smirk when he saw me glowering at him. "Dinner smells... delicious."_

_"Okay, why don't you just-"_

_"No he can't come in." I cut Maria off, glaring between her and Damon. She quirked a brow at me, confused as to why she couldn't bring her boyfriend in. Ok uhhhh, think logically think logically..._

_"Why not?" She asked._

_"Yes why not?" Damon asked innocently, but I knew he was enjoying every second of this._

_"Uh-um-ah-be-because he spiked my drink at Max's party. Yeah, yeah he was the reason I broke up with Max. Yup that's why. That's a logical explanation if I ever heard of one." I said, nodding vigorously. Maria looked from me with a confused expression, to Damon, who was just staring at me amused._

_"Did you really?" She asked, but he just looked at her and shrugged- he didn't deny it! Yes!- however Maria just shrugged too. "Come in."_

_"WHAT?!" I shouted, looking at her incredulously._

_"You're young, you still have your virginity, you're still safe." Maria said casually before going over to smell the stir fry. I however, went to the door to block Damon. He was on the other side of the threshold, and I got so close I could feel his breath on my face as I looked up slightly. He smirked down at me and whispered softly._

_"I do believe I can come in now, correct?" He said it almost teasingly._

_"What are you playing at Damon?" I growled lowly, but Damon just smirked a little more, and forcibly pushed me out of the way to get in. Maria turned around and gave him a big kiss, which he seemed a little too happy to give back once he met her in the kitchen. I rolled my eyes, and looked at my coat. It was so tempting, but I couldn't leave Maria alone here, God knows what Damon wants._

_"Oh I forgot! I've got something to show you..." Maria said before she skirted out of sight. I didn't watch her, I only went to the island where Damon was sitting down and got right back into his face._

_"You really like me, don't you? I mean it's plausible, but do you really need to get this close?"_

_"Cut the crap Damon, what do you want?" I hissed, watching him smirk at me._

_"What? I can't have a wholesome relationship with you best friend who has so kindly let me into your home?" He asked casually, but my heart started to race, making him smirk._

_"Damon, if you hurt her-"_

_"Relax, Blondie is only for fun! I swear, I haven't bitten her and I haven't compelled her." He said with a smirk. "That you know of." He added, and I rolled my eyes. I didn't tell him though, but I knew he was telling the truth, because ever since I met Damon, I had been slipping vervain into her perfume and coffee. He was actually telling the truth, but I didn't want to let him know, so I glared harshly at him._

_"I swear Damon, don't even try it." I warned quickly before Maria came back._

That was the first night, and it's been a week. It's gotten a bit easier to accept, because Damon still swears he hasn't bitten her, even if he casually adds on about how wonderful she smells every now and then. I try not to have a heart attack, but so far I've been successful.

"Lani," Maria began, making me look over to their now separated forms. "I've got to go to school, but I probably won't be back until late, so don't wait up."

"Yeah yeah, have fun... ish?" I added when I saw the eye role, and we both laughed before she left.

I spent most of the day writing the sequel to one of my books, trying to get as in depth as possible, I even played _Hallelujah_ and tried to sing along for a bit to get into my mood.

"Well it goes like this, the forth the fifth, the minor fall the major lift, the baffled king composing hallelujah..." I sung softly, before typing away like a mad woman for a good hour. That is, until a hand rested beside my keyboard and a chin on my head. This made me stop, and I rolled my eyes in frustration.

"Weren't you supposed to leave, I don't know, an hour ago?" I asked, frustrated with Damon's hovering. He gave a start of a breathy laugh before standing up.

"Maria told me you were an author, didn't quite believe it." He said casually.

"I used a pen name, didn't want to hype or anything." I muttered before saving my work and walking to the fridge to get some frozen yogurt. We sat down at the island, and I just kept thinking about one subject.

"Right now the hype is vampires in fiction," I rolled my eyes when Damon smirked. "And I figured I need to teach these dumbasses how to really writing a vampire fiction." I muttered, taking a big bite of the icy treat.

"And how do you plan to do this?" He asked, quirking a brow. That's when it hit me, and I looked at him as though he were the most fascinating thing ever. He noticed my change in behavior, and leaned away when I leaned in.

"Take me with you." I stated, not asked. There was no negotiation. Damon just raised his other brow, not quite following.

"Where?" He asked, and I just grinned.

"Take me hunting!"

* * *

I had always wondered if it were true.

The way books described the hunt of the vampire, and I knew experiencing the real deal would give me an edge that no other book had.

"So why are we here?" I asked, looking around the all too familiar bar/club. The music was so loud I could barely hear Damon, but I was sure he heard me just fine. Damon downed a glass of scotch before looking around and leaning next to me so I could hear him.

"Well I don't just grab whoever, contrary to your belief. I much prefer blondes." He said with a smirk, and I glared at his reference to Maria. He just shook his head and wrapped an arm around my shoulder to pull me closer. Then he looked around before pointing to a few girls.

"She's having problems with her boyfriend, probably on the rebound. She's looking for a good lay." He said casually, and I looked at him incredulously.

"You can hear them talking?" I asked, amazed. Damon smirked, looking down and then back up at me, our foreheads almost touching.

"If I concentrate, I can hear your heartbeat from my apartment at night." He said casually, making me shiver slightly. That was a little...cool I guess, if it wasn't me.

"So which one?" I asked, watching him stare at me for a moment longer, before he pointed to Rebound girl.

"She looks the most desperate." He said casually, then I nodded.

"Now what?" I asked, to which he smirked and stood up before grabbing my hand and made me follow him. We swerved through the crowd, heading over to Rebound Girl, and when we got close enough, Damon let go of my hand to motioned to take a seat at a table I did so, and he grinned.

"Now watch the magic." He said before turning around and walking over to the girl. He leaned against the table she was sitting at, and I began to time it all.

One comment to make her smile.

One minute to make her laugh.

Five minutes until she stood up with him.

Wait what?! Five minutes?! He looked over to me casually and smirked before wrapping an arm around her and walking her to the door. I followed after them, pretending not to notice them, even though I followed them to the alleyway. Damon was already there, pressing her to the wall as he kissed her roughly.

"Ah, too rough." Rebound Girl cried, but she didn't try to pull away. Her eyes locked onto me and she frowned. "Get out of here, you shouldn't be watching!"

"Actually," Damon said, making her look at him. "I'm educating."

She went to scream when he let the blood rush to his face, his fangs elongated, but he covered her mouth with his hand and bit down onto her. I trembled when I thought of how he had bitten me like that. I walked towards them, the sounds of him sucking up her blood ringing in my ears. I walked right behind him, and lightly touched his shoulder.

"Damon-"

Don't hurt her anymore.

He spun around and hissed at me, and my eyes widened slightly when I saw the blood rolling out of his mouth. My heart thudded wildly, and he stared down at me for a moment before the veins on his face stopped moving, and his fangs retracted. Damon looked at me sharply for a moment, before he turned back to the girl.

"Go home, clean that up, and forget this ever happened." He said, and she turned and began to walk away. Then he looked back at me.

I'm scared.

I wanted to ask if he would've killed her, but I thought that was best not openly discussed. Instead, I grabbed the towel from my purse I had brought, and gently wiped his face clean of blood. He really scared me for a second, but it was slowly melting as he smirk slowly came back.

"I think we should go back inside." I offered, to which he smirked before walking with me back inside. We sat at the bar again, and ordered some drinks.

"Did you compel that girl?" I asked suddenly after a moment of silence. He nodded, and I couldn't help but smile. It all seemed so surreal, dangerous, and... awesome.

"Will she ever remember?" I asked again, but Damon shook his head.

"Less talking, let's dance." He said suddenly, grabbing my hand and pulling me into the mob of bodies. At first I felt awkward, and I just stood there, but then Damon cupped my face and made me look at him.

"C'mon Red! Live a little, it's a lot more fun than you'd think." He said in that flirty voice. I bit my lip as he pulled me to him and he stuck a leg between mine. I mimicked him and he smirked.

"Now what?" I asked, confused on what to do.

"Just do what feels natural." He said, moving to the beat. I gulped before I began to tested the waters. A new song came on, and I swiveled on his leg, moving my body in ways that were foreign to me. Looking into Damon's eyes for confirmation, he just grinned.

"That's my girl!"

From there I was lost, moving and shaking in ways I had seen dancers do in mosh pits before. As much as I hated to admit it, it really was a lot of fun.

**Forget about your boyfriend and meet me at the hotel room, you can bring your girlfriends and meet me at the hotel room.**

I rode up and down his leg a bit, our bodies getting closer and closer each beat until they were rubbing against each other. Then I spun around and he came up behind me, and I attempted to grin my backside into him. He growled into my ear as his hands gripped my hips while he rubbed up against me. I hated to admit it, but I liked it. A lot.**  
**

**Let me tell you what we gon do. 2, plus 2, I'm gon undress you. Then we're gonna go 3 and 3 you gon' undress me. Then we're gon' go 4 and 4, we gon' freak some more!**

We danced until the song ended, and then we went back to the bar. Damon ordered us a few shots, and I just sat there grinning like the idiot I was.

"That was so much funnnn!" I said, spinning around the bar stool. When I turned back Damon handed me a shot glass and I downed it like water.

"Whoa, easy there." Damon said, taking his own a little bit slower. "Wouldn't want to drag your sorry ass back."

"I never knew this was so fun!" I said, still grinning at Damon. "I haven't had this much fun since I hung out with Alex, and he was a douche, so I dumped him." I said matter-of-factually. Damon quirked a brow, and I realized my word vomit was starting, so I frowned at him.

"Stop that!" I scolded, but he looked taken aback.

"Stop what?"

"Making me talk about myself. I don't do that." I said, so he just smirked and leaned a little bit closer to me, I met him in the middle as he leaned towards my ear.

"First time for everything." He teased, before leaning back and downing another shot. I just rolled my eyes and laughed, before downing my last shot. Then I stood up and grabbed his hand, pulling him towards the dance floor again.

"C'mon! Let's dance!" I hollered, but he didn't need much convincing.

What a night.

* * *

"Mother fuck." I muttered when I woke up. My back hurt and so did the side of my face. I figured out why pretty quickly though, I was laying half off the couch with the left side of my face kissing the hard wood floor. Groaning, I flipped myself over and sat upright. The place looked familiar, and I soon recognized it to be Damon's apartment.

I wasn't alone either, there were dozens of people passed on everywhere- when did we start a party? Every time I tried to think, it just came back as one big blur. Scratching my head, I looked down at myself to see I was missing pants, and my shirt was tied like a Daisy Duke and there was some sticking caramel like sauce on my stomach and neck.

What the fuck was I doing?

Thankfully I still had my panties, so I got up and stretched a bit, ignoring the pounding headache as I did so. It was dead quiet, despite there being a dozen or so nude or half nude people around me. The place was a mess, beer cans were everywhere, and to top it all off some guy had a lampshade over his head.

Ah, classic.

I walked to Damon's room, adamant on borrowing some sort of clothing to walk downstairs in, and leaned against the door frame. Crossing my arms, I chuckled at Damon who was passed out with three girls on him. One was curled against him, another lying across his knees, and the last was lying across his manhood. They were all stark naked, and from the red marks on their body, somebody had had a lot of fun last night.

Damon stirred, before opening his eyes slowly and looking at me. I grinned, showing my teeth as I watched him slide out from under all the girls. He raised an eyebrow at me as he walked towards me, stopped to look me up and down, and then walked to the bathroom down the hall. I just rolled my eyes- I guess being a vampire made him impervious to wander eyes...

Though I had to admit...

He had a very nice ass.

Shaking my head- then wincing at the pain- I dug into the drawers of the bedroom, before fishing out a large shirt, boxers, and then walking to the bathroom as well. Damon was in the shower, so I grabbed a hand towel and went to the sink, purposefully using cold water and enjoying the grunts Damon gave when it got really cold.

He stuck his head out to glare at me, but I just rolled my eyes and wiped all the sticking sauce from my body. He too rolled his eyes before going back to his shower. We didn't talk at all, not even after I changed and noticed Damon was watching with a grin. We just kind of grunted and groaned at each other's antics- it was far too early to make words, let alone sentences.

After I left there though, my migraine kicked into overdrive, and I groaned when I opened my apartment door.

"Maria, do you have any-"

Oh my God.

There was writing on the walls, drag marks on the floors, and it was all made of one thing.

Blood.

**YOU ARE NEXT**

It was written everywhere.

I walked in though, trying to avoid the drag marks and pools of blood. Where did all this come from?! Was I dreaming- yeah, yeah I must be dreaming. That's it, there's no way this is all real. I'm drunk, yeah that's it...The thing that really left me speechless though, was the lump hanging where my comfy chair used to be. The chair was discarded, and their neck was tangled in the chains. Blood dripped slowly to the floor from their body.

It was Maria.

I screamed.

"DAMON!"

* * *

**Woot! Look at me go! Hey guys! Another chapter! I think we're like two away from Mystic Falls! Yay! I know asshole Damon hasn't come out a lot, but I think he'll be out a shit load more once we get to the Falls soooo...  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: Did ya see that coming? What are your thoughts on Ashlan now?  
**


	7. Scramble

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'Enjoy The Silence' -_Aberlin

_**Chapter** 6  
_

_"Scramble"_

* * *

He found me holding her on the ground.

It had only been a quick tug, and her bloody body had fallen on me.

Maria.

Oh my God.

My whole body trembled as I held her close to me, rocking back and forth a little bit. The next thing I know, Damon's beside me, looking down with furrowed eyes at the scene. He hasn't even properly dressed yet, just thrown on some jeans and shoes. I looked up to his face, his bright and daring blue eyes looking at me through a damp curtain of black strands.

He looked down at Maria, and then back to me. I too looked down, looked at the gaping hole in her chest, and the torn flesh of her neck. Then I looked at my hands, my blood soaked hands that were holding onto her. Damon touched my shoulder, and I shied away. He and I locked eyes again, and this time he hoisted me up to my feet, making me drop Maria.

"Don't touch me!" I screeched, pushing on his chest. My fingers slipped a little bit, leaving smears of blood on his body. I looked to my palms, my eyes widening as tears poured freely.

"Lani-"

"Don't call me that!" I cried, being reminded of Maria and how she called me that. "Oh my God, this is her blood. My hands are soaked with her blood. No, no Maria! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" I put my head in my hands, despite the blood on them, and I started to cry.

Damon just stood there for a moment, before he grabbed both my shoulders.

"Don't touch me!" I cried, but the hard look in his eyes and the grip on my shoulders said he wasn't listening to me.

"Wise up, people die everyday." He said sharply, and it only made me want to cry more when he confirmed this wasn't a dream. "Now go get cleaned up." He said sharply, pushing me to my room. I stumbled, looking back at him to argue, but he just made a large shooing motion before forcing me into the bathroom. After I was in, he slammed the door behind me, and I gulped when I looked at myself in the mirror.

Everywhere, Maria's blood was all over my body. I stared for a little while, but when Damon's voice leaked through my door, I jumped and looked at it.

"I don't hear any water running~!" He sung in a rather annoyed tone. I started the shower after that, and peeled the soaked clothing off of me before jumping in. No matter how hard I scrubbed though, I just kept thinking about the blood that was still hidden on some part of my body. It was stained permanently on my skin.

When I got out, I got dressed into jeans, a tank, hoodie, and converse before heading to the door. I took a moment to steel myself, before opening the door and looking outside.

Nothing, there was nothing there at all. I even tried to find an error, but there was none, had I been dreaming? Yet when Damon walked in with blood smeared across his chest, I knew it wasn't a dream. I sucked in air involuntarily when I realized he'd taken her somewhere.

"Where is she?" I whispered, nervous to hear the answer.

"In the back of my car, we'll bury her somewhere along the way. Hurry up and pack a bag, we've got to go." Damon said in a rush, once again ushering me to my room. I furrowed my brow, not understanding what he meant.

"Wait what? What do you mean? Where are we going?" I demanded as he pushed me into my room. I turned around to look at him, absolutely confused.

"Well you can't stay here now! The vampire that killed her was invited in! What part of 'You're Next' don't you get?" He said as though it was so obvious. All this worry must've been evident between my pounding heart and the expression I wore. He just rolled his eyes and tossed my duffel bag at me.

"Damon-"

"Pack your essentials and I'll give you a lift to another town." He said quickly, before he left. I opened my mouth to argue, but he slammed my door before I could. So I regrettably did as I was told and packed a few of my important belongings like my journal, a change of underwear, hair ties, phone, and then as I was going to shut the bag, I hesitated.

There was one more thing.

Sneaking over to Maria's room, I reached between the mattress and foam of her bed and pulled out a rather thick book. I looked at the hand made cover, a small smile on my face.

_"What is this?" I asked, waving it in her face, revenge for her letting one of her one night stands read my journal. Maria glowered at me, trying to reach for the journal despite my major advantage in height. I grinned showing my teeth as she jumped helplessly. _

_"It's my dream journal!" She whined, so I dropped it and raised a brow.  
_

_"Dream Journal?" I asked.  
_

_"It's all the things I want to do before I die!" _

I licked my lips for a moment, before tucking it under my arm and walking back to my room. I threw the book in my duffel bag and then zipped it up and walked out. Damon was pacing around the room, checking one window and then the door. He seemed really anxious, but he relaxed immediately when he saw me.

There was someone nearby.

That's the only reason I could think of him getting so tense. I tried to keep myself calm though, and instead looked at his chest- still covered in blood. I walked to the sink, dropped my duffel bag, and grabbed a towel to wet. Then I walked to Damon and silently wiped the blood off of him. He just looked at me with this intense stare, before grabbing my duffel bag and handing it to me.

"I'll meet you at the main floor." He said, and in a second he was gone. I didn't wait, and instead went to grab my laptop, looked at my apartment once more, then raced out the door before shutting it and hustling it down the stairs. Like he said, Damon was beside me in seconds, and he lead me to his car.

Sexy car actually.

I tossed my duffel bag in the back seat before jumping in the passenger. Damon wasted no time to speed off and around the corner.

"Where are we going?" I asked, feeling anxious. Damon gave me a glance, but otherwise didn't look at me.

"You'll see."

* * *

We stopped at a motel in the middle of the night, we had been driving all day and I was really worried. Were we being followed? I wanted to ask Damon, but I also didn't want to know the answer. So I sat on the bed and looked through Maria's Dream Journal while Damon looked for a place to bury her. I read about Maria's dreams, a check mark on the ones she had accomplished. I laughed at some of the dreams- to get wasted in New York, have her first kiss in Paris- she was a lot more outgoing than I thought she was.

That was Maria for you.

Something dropped out of the folds of paper when I flipped the page, so I picked it up and read it.

'_Dear Maria,_

_ Thank you for accepting our offer to teach the fall session of 2007. We would like to invite you to begin planning as of...  
_

This was an acceptance letter.

Maria was going to teach a high school? She wasn't going to school, was she? Did that mean she had been making plans to leave to this... high school all along? Was she ever going to tell me?

Damon walked into the motel then, and I looked up at him. He didn't say anything, so I just nodded before stuffing the paper in my pocket and slipping on my shoes. He walked to his car, before opening the trunk. I swallowed when I saw her form, Damon had closed her eyes for me, and I was just happy I didn't have to touch her anymore.

That feeling off all that blood being on me came back, but I tried to ignore it.

Damon picked her up and lugged her on his shoulder, and as much as I wanted to say be careful, I knew he would just make me carry her. I gulped before shutting the trunk and following him out to the tree line across the road. It was so late at night, there wasn't anybody around at all. We walked for about ten minutes, before I saw a hole in the ground, already dug.

He looked like he was about to heave her in, before he looked at me and rolled his eyes. Then he gently placed her down, before looking at me.

"Any last words?" He asked, but I just stared at her.

"Goodbye..." I whispered, and then I helped Damon push all the dirt back into the hole. I stared at the spot for a moment, before looking up to Damon. He started to walk away, motioning for me to follow.

"Let's get something to eat." He said smoothly. So I followed him to the local bar and lounge and we found a pretty blonde for him to snack on. She wasn't nearly as pretty as Maria though...

He fed on her and then compelled her to go home and clean her wound, before he turned to me and I once again cleaned his face for him. We went inside, this lounge being very quiet despite the prime hour. We sat at the back and I order some coffee and sugary foods, while Damon just had a coffee. It was silent for a moment, my mind kept drifting to Maria, so I shook my head and focused on my only other distraction. Damon was looking at me, with keen eyes and a raised brow.

"Can vampires really eat? I mean is that really okay for your system?" I asked, a little lowly so only he could hear me. He smirked, before looking at my neck and back.

"As long as I have a healthy amount of blood in my system, yes, I can eat like a normal human. It helps with the cravings as well." He said, so I nodded. I glanced down at his ring, and he seemed to notice it too.

"Lapis Lazuli, so these really do fight daylight?" I asked, showing my own ring. He furrowed his brow, about to say something, but then he shut his mouth and just smirked at me.

"Of course, as hot as I am, the sun is infinitely hotter. It doesn't quite help my reputation to go around burning and bloody."

I rolled my eyes, smiling slightly, but then I once again thought of all the fun times we had, and then the rude awakening with Maria. So I instead pulled out the piece of paper and showed Damon it.

"Have you ever heard of this place?" I asked, pointing to the location on the paper. His brows furrowed as he read, before he nodded slowly. I continued then.

"That's where I want to go, to Mystic Falls." I said firmly.

"Where did you get that?" He asked, to which I sighed and looked into my coffee.

"Maria had it in her journal, I'm guessing she was planning on ditching me to go and teach there next week. I figured- well since her deaths my fault, I could at least do the favor of continuing her aspiration." I said, before looking up into the bold eyes of his. Those eyes would be the death of me I swear.

"So she planned to ditch you." He said with a grin. I rolled my eyes.

"Yeah well I'm used to it," I muttered, but before the intrigued expression on his face could ask, I continued. "So will you take me?"

He stared at me, really hard for a moment, before leaning closer and studying me further. I dared not to move, a little worried of what would happen if I did.

"I could take that away."

"What?"

"Maria."

Oh, was he, was he offering to compel me? What if he compelled me to forget everything though? I felt a little nervous then.

"Damon, I don't want you to compel me. I don't want to forget everything." I said firmly.

"I could just take the hurt away-"

"Damon!" I whispered harshly, I even grabbed his hand on the table to get his attention. He looked down at it, before looking up at me as I continued. "I will not, under any circumstances forget Maria, I never want to forget anyone I've ever met, even if they hurt me, they still made me who I am." I said, looking into his smoldering eyes. He looked back into mine with such intensity, I was worried he would start laughing.

"I'll just take away the hurt." He offered again, and this time I looked down at my coffee and took a shaky breath. Then, before I could think it through, I took off the tungsten ring and placed it on the table, before looking at him. He quirked a brow, giving a small smirk.

"You know I could make you do anything right now." He said as though he was thinking about doing nasty things. I swallowed a lump in my throat, thinking about it more clearly as I looked down to the ring. I just had to touch it, and I'd be safe. Yet I didn't move for it, because I knew, if Damon really wanted something, he would've gotten it already. Looking back up to him, I let out a breath.

"I trust you Damon." I said matter-of-factually. This seemed to throw him for a loop, because the surprised look that graced his features said it all. It was gone half a second later, followed by an eye roll.

"That's the dumbest thing that's ever come from your mouth." He said, sounding somewhat annoyed. I shook my head though, almost contemplating whether I was sane in doing this, but then he leaned forward and caught my gaze.

"Lani," He said, and it was as though everything else in the world had turned off. I didn't move, and I didn't want to move, because I knew I was trapped in those eyes. "Do you trust me, honestly?" He asked, and I wanted to say something that would throw him through a loop, but I found the absolute truth coming through my mouth.

"You haven't given me a reason not to, so yes. I trust you Damon." I said monotonously. As much as I wanted to look away, I couldn't, and I felt myself falling into tunnel vision. It was just Damon now, there was nothing else out there, his voice sounded like the voice of reason as he cooed into my ears. Damon swallowed, looking somewhere between upset and in pain.

"You don't feel any pain from Maria's death."

I don't feel pain for Maria's death.

"You miss her, but you want to move on."

I'm going to miss her, but it was best if I kept moving on.

"Do you understand?"

"Yes Damon."

Then he reached out and brushed his hand across my face.

"Good girl."

The next thing I knew, I was back in Damon's car, and it looked like we had been driving for a while. It was daytime, and the scenery wasn't at all familiar.

"Glad to see you're awake." Damon said next to me. I looked over to him to see him smirking at me. I grumbled a bit, feeling groggy, but then looked around a bit more.

"How long have you been driving?" I asked, curious. Damon shrugged, so I didn't push any further. Looking at my phone, I saw it was nearing noon. Gosh how much further was Mystic Falls? I looked back at Damon, from the hand slung over the window to his face, he was definitely the epitome of cool right now. Those Aviators seemed to help the whole look tie together.

Before he looked to me, I looked down at the radio, before clicking it on. I grinned when I heard my favorite song come on. Damon gave the radio a look, before looking to me. I just rolled my eyes and started swaying in my seat.

"Shut it! This is my favorite song!" I scolded, singing along. "_Words like violence, break the silence, come crashing in, into my little world, painful to me, pierce right through me, can't you understand, oh my little girl._" I sung in a higher octave. Damon kept glancing at me, and I screeched when he tried to turn the dial.

"No!"

"Stop singing!"

"Bite me."

"If you wish."

"Damon!"

"What?" He asked, but I just grinned before singing the second chorus as loud as I could while spinning the dial up.

"_All I ever wanted, all I ever needed, is here in my arms, words are very unnecessary, they can only do harm_!" I nearly shouted, Damon rolling his eyes as he finally gave up until the song broke into something else. I then turned it down to almost mute and grinned.

"Better?"

"Much," I began, before smiling at him. "Thank you." I said, and he gave a very exasperated expression to the road ahead of him, only glancing at me briefly.

"What now?" He said as though talking to a bratty child. I didn't want to tell him, but he had kept his word. He took the pain away, and I felt so good right now. I didn't dare think of being guilty, because I couldn't. I don't think you're supposed to remember when you're compelled, because everybody else I had seen Damon compel hadn't seemed to remember, so I didn't mention it. Instead, I laughed a little and winked.

"Despite your very intent hearing, you let me scream my heart out right there." I said, to which he smirked and wiggled his brows.

"That won't be the only thing you'll be screaming for."

It took me a moment, and then I smacked him.

"Damon!"

"Don't hit the driver." He said in this 'ah ah ahhh!' voice. I looked at the scenery again, and sighed.

"Where are we anyways?" I asked, to which Damon smirked again as he slowed down to take a turn. He replied at the same time that I read the sign.

"Welcome, my fair lady, to Mystic Falls."

* * *

**Woot! Look at me go! Hey guys! So sorry, I was going to update this morning, but I was late to work and I really don't wanna be fired...On the up side, this is out! Woot! So what do you guys think? I'm probably going to be re-watching season 1 and messing around a bit. It's going to loosely follow the episodes, but keep in mind adding a character changes things, and I doubt Maria and Ashlan are going to be my only OC's added. Also, I had originally had this as being Dalani (Ash and Damon) but I was thinking, how about Delena and Dalani? Dalenani? I think this would make it much more...interesting? So yeah, your thoughts?  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: Oh yeah, we're at Mystic Falls! Is there any sort of scene you'd like to see Damon and Ashlan in?  
**


	8. Trying to See Through Your Eyes

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'Eyes Open' -_Taylor Swift

_**Chapter** 7  
_

_"Trying To See Through Your Eyes"_

* * *

"Miss Corral, I'm afraid that I cannot allow you to take Miss Brawn's place as an English teacher, no matter the situation." The principle insisted, making me grind my teeth silently in frustration. I was going to be a persistent little bitch though, no way in hell was I giving up without a knock out fight.

"Look, Maria was my best friend, and she's gone missing. She left a note for me to take over her job, and I want to keep to her wishes." I said softly, looking to the table then back up to the man's dark eyes. He seemed to think for a moment, before speaking.

"May I see this note?" He asked, to which I nodded and pulled it from my pocket. I had forged it a few hours prior, when Damon and I had planned out the day. He looked at it, then at something on his computer- probably checking the hand writing. I was always good at copying Maria's writing, often times I was sitting with her finishing some kind of essay in high school. The girl was a whole five years older than me, though you would never know because her maturity seemed to hit the floor a lot, not that I was any better.

"Do you have an application handy?" The principle said with a sigh, to which I handed him the fake application I had made a few hours prior. Damon said not to worry about references and such, that if I ran into trouble he would compel the school to accept me. Man did he want me gone or what? At least he was staying long enough to make sure I settled in right.

"How old are you?" He asked, as though to double check my age. I smiled and lied by pulling out a fake ID I had since I was fourteen, saying I was the same age as Maria.

"Twenty four."

"Have you completed your degree?"

"Yes." He looked at me, but then sighed and rubbed his face. He looked tired, tired of me and this whole situation.

"Alright Miss Corral, I'll tell you what. I'll give you the curriculum and you try out for a week. After that we'll take it from there." He said, and I grinned happily.

"Yes sir!"

Too bad I didn't realize what a boring curriculum high school was. Even as an English teacher, it was boring as all Hell. I had forgotten that everything was dumbed and passionless these days. Most kids probably couldn't write a moving piece if it killed them. Especially with a curriculum like this. I had the first period to myself, before English Literature walked into the door. I didn't look up at first, flipping through the pages and frowning. Someone smelled in this class, that sucked. I should bring an air freshener next time, thank god I had a sink bath before coming here or I might've looked like the Grim Reaper.

Sighing, I shoved the entire book off my desk and into the garbage. What a load that was! No room for imagination!

I stood up and finally looked at my class. Hm, full room. Everybody was silently staring at me, so I casually waved before grabbing a piece of paper for attendance. I handed it to the first person in the row and smiled.

"Alright, check your name off if you're here and hand it down," I said, before turning around and grabbing a piece of chalk. "As you're all dying to know, my name is Ashlan Corral. I swear to God if you call me Miss Corral I will hang you from your toes." I said, underlining my name before turning back with a smile.

"My name is Ashlan, Miss Ashlan, or Ash. I'm not a very formal person, and I don't particularly like rules. So as long as you don't piss me off I'm sure we'll get along just fine." I said, noticing the paper was indeed being handed down. Then I continued after a moment.

"Alright, since I love summer so very much, and I know you do too, I'm not going to kill you guys like the rest of your teachers and bore you to death with mindless homework, or any of that boring 'write about your summer' crap. I want to exercise your minds a bit, delve into your imagination. That's what the world seems to lack these days." I muttered the last part.

"So," I began. "I want you guys to pull out a piece of paper," I said, and the whole class obeyed. I very much enjoyed that feeling, of being in control, and grinned. "Now I'm going to say a word, and I want you guys to say write the absolute first thing that comes to mind. I don't care if it's profound or rude, I want it to be written down." So then I began to think of random words.

"Fruit...Kitty...Sports...School...Friends...Family...Okay, now I want you all to bring those papers up to me." I said, and everybody did so. Then I mixed them up and then began to hand them back once everybody sat down. I glanced at one of the girls- she looked really familiar, but I brushed it off quickly and continued on. "Okay, now that somebody has so kindly picked your words for you, I wanted you to make up a sentence using all of those words. It can be anything you want, I have no limits. Just no names, unless it's Billy Bob Joe, or Janet Jackson, I don't want to hear it!" I said, passing a paper to one of the guys near the back. My brow furrowed as I saw his obnoxious ring.

"That's an interesting ring," I began, and he looked up to me. It reminded me of Damon's ring. "Is it a family crest?" I asked, to which he slowly nodded.

"Yes, from the Renaissance." He said, to which I smirked.

"Oh, and what family crest is this?" I asked.

"Salvatore."

Oh I had to fight really had not to show shock. If he was related to Damon, was he a vampire too? Or had their bloodline lived on and I was just being paranoid? Lapis Lazuli, no I don't think I was being paranoid.

"Italian, interesting. Perhaps you can use your family's history in an assignment I have planned." I said vaguely, just trying to brush it off as I kept moving.

"Now, you have the rest of the period, if you're done just shush and let everybody else finish, then go crazy." I said, sitting at my desk and checking my messages.

_Mystic Falls Hotel, Room 223. Ask the front desk for a key if I don't see you._

Oh boy.

* * *

Did you know school teachers actually have to evaluate and work?

Here I thought they just bitched at you and gave you grades based on how much they liked you.

Go figure.

Some of them were actually pretty clever, others, not so much. I wrote down a list and level I believed each person to be in creativity, just to keep in mind when someone didn't do so good. I finished, and then stacked everything in the corner before stalking towards my bags. I had gone on a quick shopping trip- bought essentials and a few pairs of clothes- before I stripped down and headed for the shower. God it felt so good! I enjoyed that for about an hour, before walking out of the steaming room and slipping on some underwear and a tank top with a built in bra.

With boobs as small as mine, these babies were heaven.

"Never knew you were so open."

I nearly leaped out of my skin when I noticed Damon lying on the bed. I frowned, glaring sharply at him as I towel dried my hair.

"There's a lot you don't know about me babes." I muttered. "So how long are you staying anyways?" I added, to which which Damon smirked.

"I've actually decided to stay in Mystic Falls." He said casually, and I raised a brow- what was he up to now? I put my hands on my hips and quirked my head lightly.

"Oh really?" I said in a disbelieving tone. He rolled his eyes before sitting up and pulling me onto the bed too. I squeaked out his name as I tried to stay on top of him, but he pinned me beneath him easily. I laughed as he grinned at me, our faces so close I could feel his breath.

"Is it so hard to believe I want to be in my home town?" He said in a slightly dramatic voice. I quirked a brow at this, actually curious about that statement.

"You were born here?" I asked, and he hmmed a reply. "As in human born or..." He smirked at my unasked question, leaning down to smell my neck, my pulse more specifically. Then he came back to my face and our noses were almost touching.

"I was born and killed here." He said smoothly, casually. "And I want to rip it apart." He added in a darker tone. Would it be bad to call that undeniably sexy? Or wrong because he was talking of death? I reached up and brushed his hair back from his face, and he smirked down at me.

"So," He began in a lower voice, grinning deviously. "Ready to have some fun?"

I rolled my eyes and he got off me, helping me to my feet.

"What is your idea of fun anyways?" I asked, curious about his answer. He just shrugged, then looked at me through dark lashes.

"I'm sure we could find _something_ to do."

* * *

Turns out Damon was wrong.

Small towns suck, there's nothing to do. No clubs, or cool coffee shops. The best joint to hang was The Mystic Grill, but it was packed with so many teens I got bored really fast. Damon said while I went to the bathroom he had found a new lady to prey on when he met me in the car, and I wasn't surprised she was a blonde.

"Somebody has a fetish." I teased, Damon just grinned at me.

"You know what they say, Blondes have more fun."

"Damon, if we go by stereotypes then I bet if you walked up to her she'd like caramel sauce off your stomach." I said with a laugh as we dove around town, looking for something else to do. It was then that I remembered about Stefan, and glanced at Damon.

"So, is Stefan your younger brother? Is he a vampire too?" I asked, to which Damon glanced at me.

"Yeah, but he's the emotional baggage side to being a vampire. Have you noticed the brooding forehead yet?" He asked with a grin. My eyes widened and I grinned toothily back, snapping my fingers as if remembering something.

"Oh yeah, especially when he looked at that brunette- it was something like this..." I trailed off, doing my best to imitate the brow. Damon actually laughed at that, but it was then that I noticed we weren't in town anymore. We were on the outskirts, heading deeper into the woods. When Damon saw a parked car, I knew what we were doing as he stopped a little further than it in the bush.

Damon went to get out, but he glanced at me, so I got out as well and pointed to the trees. He looked up, then back at me with a devious grin.

"Trust me?" He asked, but before my mouth could start running, I stepped closer and he wrapped an arm around my waist. He hoisted me into the air, and in a blur I was suddenly really high up in the branches. There was a tent below us, as Damon waited until I was stable before pressing a finger to his lips as he smirked. I swallowed before nodding, and he was gone.

I never questioned my motive for wanting to see this, maybe it was because Damon was ultimately the most intriguing person I had ever met, or maybe I was just on crack and desperation was pooling into me to know the truth. I wanted to know what vampires were really like, not the sparkly shits that were on the big screen and (somehow) best sellers lists. I wanted to see the gory truth, because it was far more real than that fairytale crap.

The man walked out of the tent, and in a second Damon had him up in the tree across from me, over the tent. He bit down onto his neck and I watched as the man went limp in his arms. I gulped, remembering Damon's face.

"See! I knew it would..." There was a woman that came out of the tent then, and she looked at the tent with her flashlight. Blood had been pouring onto it, and she flashed the light to the tree above her and found her lover there. She screamed before taking off towards her car. It was locked, and I swallowed hard when it opened, and Damon leaped down on her frozen form.

He seemed to have a thing for couples, was it because there was more blood? Or was it because of some deeper meaning? it seemed the more I was around Damon, the more I wanted to know him. Which in itself is a big deal, because I never want to know people, ever. It's always been people and me, two separate groups, but then there's Damon, and I keep laughing inside about how this all started with some ridiculous bar talk.

Damon appeared below me, his face smudged somewhat clean of blood. I waited for him to get me-this height was too high to jump from- but he just stood there and I got a bit nervous. He spread his arms out, but I just held onto the branches tightly.

"What happened to trusting me?" He mocked with a grin, but I just shook my head. I trusted him- not the impact though.

"I'm, I'm heavy." I said softly, slightly nervous. Damon just snorted and stood there with his arms open. Hesitantly, I swung so I was hanging from the branch, just above him.

"Lani-"

"I trust you! I don't trust nature and my expanding waistline though!" I said, no longer able to see his expression, though I had a feeling he was getting fed up with-

My fingers slipped from the branch.

I let out a scream as I fell.

Turns out I nothing to fear, Damon caught me and saved my sorry ass. However before he could put me down I had him by the collar and glared at him.

"Don't make me do that! I hate heights!" I complained, to which Damon rolled his eyes and dropped me on the ground. I landed with a small thud and groaned before standing up, rubbing my ass. It didn't help when Damon came behind me and steered me towards his car, making me move.

"Yeah yeah, just get your sorry ass-" He smacked the cheek I wasn't rubbing. "- into the car." He said, and I leaped into the air when he smacked me, before turning to glare at his grinning face.

"Jerk." I muttered, before climbing in. He was in his seat a second later, and started the car. We drove back to the hotel in less than an hour, where we drank a bit before Damon passed out on my bed. I huffed a bit, thinking I was going to get a bed to myself- since there was only one bed- but instead I decided to write into my journal. I hadn't done that in a while.

_When you think you've finally figured out life, it likes to throw you for a loop. _

_When I first found out that vampires were real, I was really scared, but then I befriended one, and suddenly life seems a lot more fulfilling. Even as he sleeps there, _on my bed, _I can't help but smile. I've never been in love with someone, so I wouldn't know for sure, but I believe I know what I feel for Damon. I'm not in love with him, but I am very... attached to him. _

_Not like a child is to their toys, or man to his dog, or even as siblings are somewhat forced to be. It feels like, since Damon has strutted into my life, everything is a bit more colorful. I always tried to see more than one side to things, but turns out there's this whole new world I never knew existed. _

_To me, I think Damon is that one person that, no matter what happens, you hope you can still be friends with. I hope that even when I'm old and grey, he will still talk to me, and do that sexy little smirk at me, because Damon is my friend, my best friend by many standards though. I've been asking myself for weeks- do I regret meeting him? Regret learning of the supernatural? And the answer is no- I'm actually very happy I've met Damon. He's showing me things I never knew of, and I dare say I like it.  
_

_I have a feeling that Damon is going to leave me one day, and I'll be sad but it's probably for the best. We both have to move on- I can't stay with the young forever, I'll grow old at some point, then I can bitch to the young ones about my early bird specials!- but I also hope that day never comes. So each day, I want to wake up, and ask for that day to be tomorrow. So that way one day tomorrow won't come for me, and I'll never have that day of sorrow.  
_

_I am actually curious about what Bella thought of me running away with her sister's killer, a vampire no less, with her pretty little rings and necklace.  
_

_Ah well, she'll probably haunt me soon._

* * *

**Woot! Look at me go!  
**

**Okay, so I'm thinking this story will follow the main storyline, but a few changes, y'know, take out some characters, add in others, that whole shebang!  
**

**Hm, I don't have much to say, other than writing Damon and Lani's relationship is Fantastic Bombastic!  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: What do you think of Ash as a teacher?  
**


	9. The Darker Side I Ran From

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'Boom' -_Anjulie

_**Chapter** 8  
_

_"The Darker Side I Ran From"_

* * *

Dammit all!

I was late for the meeting.

Well this was a great way to make a good impression. Then again, I did have to talk with that asshole then, something I'd rather avoid. Tanner was, well in many aspects he was a huge fucking asshole. He criticized the amount of sugar I put in my coffee for God's sake! I don't think he had a nice bone in his body- his funny bone was probably all scratchy and-and...yuck. Still, the Principle didn't seem to trust Tanner on his own, and had said if I wanted to be on his good side I'd go to the meeting.

When I walked into the room, the woman sitting in the desk-I presume Miss Sommers- looked like she wanted to strangle Tanner. I smiled, and walked over to shake her hand. _  
_

"Miss Sommers, I'm Miss Corral, but you can call me Ash." I said, and the woman took my hand to shake. She smiled back, seemingly grateful for the distraction.

"Jenna." She said, and I withdrew to look at Tanner. He rolled his eyes before speaking.

"As I was saying Miss Sommers, Jeremy's grades are going to take a big hit this year, skipping so many classes when the term has just begun is huge. Are you sure you can't find another legal guardian to take care of Jeremy?" Tanner said, and I rolled my eyes. He looked at me and glared.

"Something wrong, Miss Corral?" He taunted, but I just looked at him and my lips pulled back into a toothy grin.

"Why yes, there is something majorly wrong with your attitude, Mister Tanner." I said in the same condescending tone he used on Jenna, before turning to her. "Now I have to say I too am a bit worried about Jeremy, do you know the full background story as to why Jeremy could be acting out?"

"Miss Corral-"

"Shut up, you were saying Jenna?" I asked with a smirk on my face at Jenna's wide eyes.

"Uh, well you see, Jeremy and Elena's parents passed away four months ago."

Ah, so it's one of those cases. I nodded in understanding, thinking back to Maria momentarily, to my family, to everything really. Loss is something that is easy to communicate with though, it's something we've all had, and instantly I felt a connection.

"I'm sorry for your loss, and their loss, how are you related to the family?" I asked, trying to be kind about it. Jenna looked down for a moment, before looking back up to me.

"I'm the mother's younger sister." She said, and I nodded.

"And how do you think you've been doing?" I asked, and she immediately glanced to Tanner, but I snapped my fingers to get her attention. "Ignore cranky pants, I want to know how you feel."

"It's been tough but...not impossible." She said, and I smiled, I actually liked her, she was a bold girl from the way she didn't back off of Tanner.

"I see, Jenna," I began, looking down to the floor to find my words. Then I looked back up into her eyes. "I understand the pain of loss that Jeremy is going through. Everybody has their own ways of coping, I get that, but I think you also should know. The coping Jeremy's using doesn't just stop on it's own. Somebody needs to give him a huge wake up call before reality sets in and it's too late." I tried to say it as kindly as possible, but I think she deserved to know my honest opinion too.

Jenna nodded, biting her lip and looking away, so I decided to add on to it.

"Could I possibly get to know Jeremy, and Elena, on a more personal level? I've had friends with the same situation, and I feel as though I want to help them." I asked, sounding a little hopefully. Jenna looked at me, her mouth opening but nothing intelligible coming from it for a moment.

"Uh-um...uhhh...yeah. I mean yes, that would be great. Perhaps I could make dinner for the night after the comet and we could all sit down to eat?" Jenna offered, making me smile and nod.

"That would be awesome." I said, ignoring Tanner's eyes on me, glaring probably.

Suck on it, bitch.

* * *

I was awoken to the sound of Damon entering the hotel. Groaning, I rolled over when the light came on and covered my head.

"Damon!" I cried, angry that he was being an ass- of course he could see without the lights on, he was a fucking vampire! He ignored my cries though, and sat on my back.

"Wakey wakey Sleeping Beauty." He taunted, his cold fingers tracing whatever part of my jaw he could reach. I shuddered, before looking up at him and glaring.

"I better be getting a prize for this." I muttered, to which Damon chuckled before leaning down to whisper in my ear.

"Depends, how much did you say you like biting?" He whispered.

Oh God, now what?

* * *

Stupid fucking asshole!

First- he wakes me up at two in the fucking morning. Second- he fills me in very vaguely on a plan of his. Third- he sleeps on top of me, and I literally mean _on top of me_, and not the hot and dirty kind. His shoulder was pressed into my ribs most of the night, while his head laid on mine.

Little shit.

I may just have to cut his balls off after all.

Ah, but they'd just grow back...Damn.

"Hi, Miss C- I mean hi Ash."

I looked up quickly at this, slightly caught off guard to see Elena standing next to my table. I smiled before gesturing for her to sit. I had asked Elena yesterday to meet me at the Grill to talk about Jeremy and her. She had agreed, and here we were, outside the Grill eating. She sat down and smiled at me.

"How's it hanging Elena?" I asked, and she smiled back, it actually looked almost real too.

"I've been good," She began before looking around then back at me. "So, Ash, what was it you wanted to talk with me about?"

"I... heard about your parents." I began, to which she pursed her lips and nodded. "And I wanted to know how you're feeling."

"I'm fine." She said right away with a faker smile than before. I just rolled my eyes and leaned on the table closer to her than.

"Okay look, I know you probably don't want to talk about it with me, and that's cool, but you can't lie to yourself too Elena, it's not going to help." I said honestly, to which she looked a little surprised.

"I said I'm fine."

"Fine isn't a feeling, it's a state of mind." I countered, to which she shut up and looked at my drink. The waiter came and I got another round of coffee and she got a drink as well.

"I just..." She seemed at a loss of words, so I filled in the blanks.

"Can't picture it as real? Wake up every morning feeling like you're living a lie, like a part of your life is missing?" She looked at me, and looked confused.

"How did you...?" I just smiled, but didn't explain.

"Elena it's okay to be afraid, to be upset about what's happened, but you have to realize. Nobody's going to pick you up and keep you moving, nobody can. Only you can, and I want you to know if you want somebody outside of that mess to talk to, I'm here, because it sucks to do it alone."

She was quiet then, and looked down to her drink, before back up to me. Then she just... talked. She explained her problems, about what she felt when they passed, and the sad thing is every emotion she'd felt, I had felt too. It was a connection, was it wrong to feel good that I connected to somebody? We just talked for a whole two hours about it, about her whole situation, and I actually caught myself trying to help her. I wanted to, I hated seeing people waste away, being useless was worse than being an ass.

I wanted to see life in her, in everybody.

After a little while, two other girls appeared. I recognized them from my Lit class too- Bonnie and Caroline. I also knew they were the two at the Grill, Caroline being the one Damon flirted with. They pulled up chairs, and I made to get up.

"Uh, I guess I should leave-" However, Caroline had no problem grabbing my wrist and pulling me back down. I was mildly surprised, and grinned in surprise.

"No sit! I'd love to hear all your juicy stories Ash." She gushed, and I raised a brow before Bonnie caught my attention.

"Ah, Caroline's always wanting pointers." She said before giving the blonde a look. I just snickered- the things my amazingly creative mind could make up...

"I'd love to, ladies, but I'm afraid my stories are not for the weak of heart." I added, grinning at Caroline and Elena, then Bonnie. "I actually have to go too." I added, flipping open my phone, and pretended to be late. In reality, I wasn't interested in hanging with a bunch of broody teens all day, it got boring quickly.

"Nice talking with you Ash." Elena said, and the others waved while I said goodbye and walked off.

* * *

The Grill was filled to the brim with people, but I just sat at the bar, swiveling my seat around and chugging drink after drink. I was bored, and Damon had made it clear he didn't want me to act like I knew him. Which was why despite him sitting just three seats down, I was playing eye tag. I pretended not to notice him glancing though, and was trying very hard not to gag when our eyes did meet.

"Stefan, so nice of you to join me!" Damon said, and I noticed Stefan out of the corner of my eye. He looked from me to Damon, and I could faintly hear their conversation despite pretending not to.

"What's your game Damon? Why have you been following her around?" He asked, and I barely heard him. Who was he following? Me? Had he been following me during my walk through town and I just wasn't noticing?

Maybe I should've dyed my hair blonde.

"What can I say? I'm a sucker for the sexy school teacher look." Damon purred out, and I had to chug my whole drink right there to keep from laughing.

"Damon, leave her alone. She has nothing to do with this." Stefan insisted. Oh, if only you knew bud, I was already on to you and your little secret. Damon looked from me to Stefan, and I just knew a devious smirk was on his face.

"I wonder what Elena would think of her favorite English teacher were to... disappear?" He said, and I was trying really hard to keep my breathing steady as he said this. He wouldn't actually try to- Oh wait, he's Damon, of course he would. I've still got my rings, so I should be good. I jumped a little when I saw Damon sitting in the bar stool next to me, and out of the corner of my eye I saw Stefan's brooding forehead look. He walked away, but I just smiled at Damon.

"Well hello there." Damon said, and just to make sure this went smoothly, I tried my best not to say any snarky comments. Instead I smiled, before looking to the floor, then over to Elena and Stefan who were sitting with a bunch of people, and then back up into those blue eyes through my long lashes.

"Hey." I breathed back, giving a smooth smirk. Damon, for a split second, seemed to be a little surprised, but then he just smirked and leaned towards me. I had to admit, I had always been curious about Damon's flirty advances, were they really that good or did he just compel everybody?

"I couldn't help but notice you, all alone. My I offer my services to you and... entertain?" He said with a wiggle of his brow, and I was fighting really hard not to burst into laughter. I covered it up with half lidded eyes and a soft smirk, leaning my head to look up at him while he looked down at me.

"Well, what sort of services are you offering?" I cooed back, smirking a bit more when Damon leaned down to my ear and whispered.

"Whatever you would like, my fair maiden." He said softly before softly kissing my pulse. Had anybody else done that, I would've mocked, but he did it so gooooooodd... Oh my God, pretending or not, I did want to jump into bed with him. My heartbeat must've given it away, and between hearing it and feeling it with his lips, I knew he knew he'd done something right. He leaned up to look at me, our foreheads almost touching as I smirked.

"Well, do I get a name? Mine is Ashlan."

"Damon, so glad to have met you my lady." He said before grasping my hand and kissing it lightly. I actually felt myself blush as he smirked at me. He knew he was getting to me, which drove me even crazier. I took in a deep breath, took in his scent, before smiling.

"Well Damon, I have all night for you to persuade me, but I'm a go getter, why don't you see what you can teach me?" I purred, my breath splaying over his face like his did mine. He smirked then, and grasped my hand again. Then he led me out of the bar, but I didn't miss the smirk he threw over his shoulder- probably at Stefan- before he took me out the back alley. Without warning, there was just a_ whoosh_, and we were up on a building's ledge a ways from the Grill.

"Damon!" I cried, playing the part and hiding my anger at lack of warning by shouting.

"Ah ah ah! No shouting or I'll drop you~!" He said in a sing song voice, jerking my arm to make me fall back a little. I cried out each time, and begged him to stop. He just kept doing it though, grinning as I begged even more. Actual tears poured down my face from me trying not to blink, and they looked pretty real, at least I hoped so.

"Damon!" Stefan shouted, and he actually made me jerk a bit too.

"Not bad! Have you been eating bunnies?" Damon taunted, and I tried to hide my disgust. Eat a bunny? Bambi? That's cruel!

"I told you to let her go Damon, she had nothing to do with this!" Stefan insisted, but Damon just rolled his eyes and pulled us off the ledge and onto the building. I trembled in his arms, pretending to be absolutely afraid.

"Come on Stefan! You should know that's just an open invitation for me!" Damon teased, and he pulled my back to his chest then, brushing my hair away from my neck. The previous bite mark I had before was long gone thanks to Bella, but I still felt a shiver run through me in remembrance to the event.

"Damon, you won't do it. I know you won't because it's me you're after, not Elena, and not Ash." Stefan insisted as I struggled against Damon. I was actually struggling against him, and I felt really afraid when I realized he wasn't even trying against me. How strong is he anyways?!

"You never did know when to shut up." Damon growled, and then I let out a real scream when he bit down into my neck. I cried loudly as I felt him drink at my blood.

"Stop! Please!" I cried, half way being truthful, and half way acting. I wanted him to stop, I wanted him to stop before I blacked out. Stefan was shouting too, begging even.

"Please Damon! Stop!"

"**Damon**!" I cried, and he ripped his head away with a quick jerk, and I could feel his eyes on me, watching fresh tears roll down my face. I struggled against him again, and he surprised me by letting me fall to the ground. I scuttled backwards in a crab walk, before running into Stefan's legs. He looked down at me, and I could see his face changing too. I let out another scream before trying to get away from him too. Stefan pinned me though with his foot, and he looked at me with those dark veins squirming around under his skin, his fangs elongated.

"Do it, Stefan. You should really taste her blood, it's quite delicious." Damon taunted, and my heart just kept hammering away in my chest. Stefan looked down at my bloody throat, and for a second I thought he was really going to kill me. Then he turned around and started breathing heavy.

"Better hurry, or she might go running through the streets screaming vampire." Damon taunted, and I just sat there, absolutely frozen. They really could kill me in a second, I had to be careful.

"No," Stefan began. "No you know what? Forget it. Let her go, let her tell Mystic Falls that vampires exist, let them chain us up and burn us alive. At least that way I'll be rid of you." Stefan spat, to which Damon just gave a short laugh.

"A little dramatic, but I like your attempt at depth." He said, before walking over to me. "Come here beautiful." He said, and I flinched involuntarily away from him, but he grabbed me anyways and looked deep into my eyes. Did he know I still had my ring? Yes he must, or he wouldn't be compelling me to forget, right? He wouldn't ask me to forget all of this...

Right?

"You had one too many drinks, so you came to the roof top for air. Stefan and I found you here, you were bit by a raccoon, so we made you feel better."

Damon wouldn't be looking at me and trying to compel me if I didn't have my ring.

Right?

* * *

I didn't feel very good that night. As I hopped out of the shower and into a black tank top with a built in bra and baby blue boy cut undies, I couldn't help but stare at the mark on my neck. I swallowed, nervous to touch it. Damon walked into the bathroom, and looked at me.

"That was some pretty good acting you had there." Damon teased, but I was so intent on my wound that I almost didn't notice. I just hmmed a reply, but when he took a step towards me, my body reacted by spinning around to stare at him. He hesitated with a raised brow, probably hearing my heartbeat as if pounded against my ribcage.

"Lani?" He asked, then walked up to me. I flinched when he reached a hand out to touch me, so he recoiled.

"Just-Just tell me Damon," I gulped, and our eyes were locked into place then. "Would you have stopped him? If he had bitten me?"

He watched me for a moment, before his hand cupped my cheek. His incredibly warm hand brought more comfort than it should have, but I found myself leaning into his touch without even thinking about it. My body was reacting on it's own, I didn't even know what it was thinking.

"I had no doubt Stefan wasn't going to bite you."

"Really? Then why antagonize him?" I asked, now curious as I turned to grab some antiseptic from the cabinet. Damon watched me, putting his head on top of mine, as I gently cleaned my wound.

"To make sure he doesn't suspect anything."

"Oh." That would make sense I guess. If Damon attacked me, then there was no way we knew each other, right? So now Stefan thought Damon was out to get me...

"Which also means that I can follow you around during the day and not look suspicious." He said with a smirk, and his warm arms wrapped around my waist. I rolled my eyes as he continued. "To top it all off, it'll piss Stefan off to no return."

"You're an ass."

"You love it."

I rolled my eyes again and laughed.

"Oh yeah babes, I just want to jump into bed with you right now." I put down my cleaning supplies and put a gauze and tape over the wound. Then I smirked into the mirror and looked at him. "Better yet, skip the bed, take me right now."

He chuckled at me, leaning down to smell my hair a bit.

"You are a strange one, aren't you?"

"Damn straight." I teased. This is what I loved about Damon, he could take me from feeling afraid to... just plain calm in a heartbeat. Damon let me go, and I yawned before walking out of the bathroom and jumping into bed. Damon didn't look ready for bed though, so I raised a brow.

"I've got a hot date tonight, don't wait up." He teased, to which I rolled my eyes.

"I'd wish you luck, but if it's Blondie, you won't need it." I said, to which he raised a brow. "Oh come on! I bet if you asked, she'd like you head to toe without stopping for the rest of her life."

I know I would.

Damon chuckled as I tucked myself in and laid down. He looked at me for another second, before bending over and kissing my forehead. I smiled as he looked deeply into my eyes. I liked Damon's stare, it wasn't a full blown romantic novel stare which I hated, and it wasn't lifeless. He had this strange passion in his eyes whenever he spoke, even when it was a mundane task, he had this look about him, this air, that just made you want that stare to linger on you.

I'm really going to be sad the day he leaves.

"I was more worried about stopping myself." He said lowly, and before I could even furrow my brow, he would out of the room. What did he mean? Stopping himself from doing wh-

Oh.

_Oh._

I didn't know whether to be grinning, or freaking when I heard that. The room suddenly felt hot, so I tossed and turned for a moment, before grabbing my journal from under my pillow. My pathetic excuse of a hiding spot- since Damon seemed intrigued with my thoughts- and began to write.

_Have you ever questioned someone you thought was your friend? _

_I found myself questioning Damon today. __What started out as a means for us to hang out turned into a huge fear for me. __I had been saying for the longest time- Damon won't hurt me, he's my friend. What if it wasn't intentional though?  
_

_I was scared when I saw his face again, saw that he wanted to devour me. _

_I should probably correct that. _

_I wasn't afraid of Damon, or that he is a vampire.  
_

_I was afraid that he wasn't going to stop.  
_

_I thought, for a breath or two, that he was going to actually kill me.  
_

_Was it wrong to think that? I still trust him, I still want to, at least. Yet I can't shake it, that never ending feeling of him teeth tearing apart my flesh. My blood rolling down my shoulder. I couldn't even keep up the charade much longer after that.  
_

_I came home before Damon, thank God, I was able to cry alone in the shower, but I needed to stop that.  
_

_Damon is my friend, I have to trust that he won't hurt me, because that's what friends do, they trust each other. The only way for Damon to trust me, was if I trusted him.  
_

_Right? I just really hoped, I prayed to God, that I wasn't making a mistake.  
_

_No, I'm not, at least, not yet._

* * *

**Y'know, this just gets funner and funner! I'm soo happy right now! Remember guys, reviews make a very happy author! The more the merrier!  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: What would you have done in Ash's situation?  
**


	10. Kic Back, On Track

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'Eagle Eye Cherry' -_Save Tonight

_**Chapter** 9  
_

_"Kick Back, On Track"_

* * *

_Morality. _

_It seems to get the better of us a lot.  
_

_I find it funny that so many people set out and commit their whole life to understanding the human mind. They are eternally fascinated by why the mind works the way it does, but it's only because we are so primal that the answer is obvious.  
_

_When we are born, we don't know anything- or so many believe. I believe it's hardwired into our brains to do one thing and one thing alone.  
_

_Want.  
_

_We want food to make our stomach stop hurting. We want attention so that we have some sort of interaction with the world. We want to feel warm to stop our body's from shivering. We want to explore the world, because it's just at our finger tips.  
_

_It's only through age that we learn- wanting is not the only thing we can do. It's just the core founding of new emotions. We will always want things, there will never be a time when we won't. We want love, we want money, we even want attraction. People say telling others what you want is the hardest thing ever, but I believe that's a big lie.  
_

_The truly most difficult task for any sentient being to learn is not showing what we want, but giving what we want to others. Despite our eternal quest for possessing things that nobody ever taught us, giving things away is something we can only be taught.  
_

_It is true that we cannot give away something that was never ours in the first place, but giving something that is only ours to possess is so much more difficult. Yet we continue our quest of possession, and we learn the tricks behind this thing called sharing. Did you know, that if you give someone something, they'll give you something in return?  
_

_We've got it down to a science- for every action there is a reaction. So in this eternal quest of possession, we learned that if you want somebody to give you something, you must give them something of equal value in return.  
_

_Funny thing is, they never say what happens when you give too much._

* * *

"And that is why I love to write limericks." I said, and the class gave a laugh. I smiled, turning around to clean up the board. The bell rang after that, so I turned around and hollered out a reminder that papers were due next Friday.

"Enjoy the rest of your day!" I called, and a few kids actually said goodbye when they left. I busied myself with papers, cleaning everything up, but the clearing of a throat alerted me to a presence. Looking up, I saw Elena standing there with a smile.

"You wanted to see me Ash?" She asked with a smile, and I nodded.

"Yeah, Jenna invited me over for dinner, y'know, to discuss Jeremy and you and... the whole situation. I was planning on using it to somehow gain a bit more sympathy for the kid, maybe help him out. Anyway, is that dinner still on?" I asked, curiously. Elena opened her mouth to speak, but paused for a second.

"Actually, I think Jenna said something about it next week, but would you mind coming over tonight anyways?" Elena asked, so I quirked a brow and she explained. "Bonnie and Stefan are coming over for dinner, but there's this whole misunderstanding between them, and you seem pretty good at sorting things out." Elena said with a hopeful smile.

I snorted a bit, cupping my face to hide my laughter. She gave me an odd look, and so I shook my head.

"I'd love to, buuuut I'm not that good at being nice to people, I'm actually an Emo Loner Girl, so my friends say." I said the last part a bit quieter, thinking of Maria. Elena seemed to catch on, but then I shook my head.

"Dinner sounds lovely." I insisted, smiling widely. She nodded before giving me details and walking out the door. However, she paused mid way, talking to somebody. It was then that Stefan came in, and Elena watched him for a moment before leaving. I gave a forced smile, still clearing papers.

"Stefan, to what do I owe the pleasure?" I asked, grinning slightly.

"I was actually wondering about that wound on your neck." Stefan said, and I immediately grasped at the bandage before shaking my head.

"Ah yeah, rabid raccoon isn't exactly the greatest story to tell the class, but it is true." I said, remembering how I walked in announcing never to get drunk because raccoons will eat you. Most of the class laughed, even more seemed shocked when they saw my neck.

"Are you feeling okay, is there anything I could do?" Stefan asked, looking upset, God does he ever not have that brooding forehead. I just shook my head and grinned.

"Nah man, I'm A-OK, isn't it supposed to be me worrying about you, my fine pupil?" I teased, to which he gave a light smile.

"Well if anything ever comes up-" He began, but I cut him off.

"Actually, I just thought I'd let you know I'm coming to dinner, and I'd really appreciate if you stopped treating me like a child and more like a friend." I said smoothly, never breaking eye contact. That didn't seem to help the brooding forehead, but he did nod in understanding.

"Great! Seeya tonight!" I said, before walking out of my class for the day.

* * *

"Tell me again why you're coming?" I asked, trying to find earrings that didn't make my head look massive. Damon rolled over on the bed, and I could see him clearly from inside the bathroom.

"You should really walk around like that more often." He said smoothly, looking at my bra and panties, making me sigh as I picked up big hoop earrings. Good enough. I slipped those on before slipping on a black halter dress.

"I probably could go bra-less, my boobs are almost tiny enough..." I muttered, before throwing on some make up. Normally I didn't put anything on, but I figured if I didn't do it every once and a while I'd be screwed when I did try to put it on next. "Anyway, you didn't answer my question." I said again.

"Oh you know, bother Stefan by closing in on what he has."

"Elena."

"Exactly, and if I'm invited into her home, imagine what I could do." Damon said with a smirk. I frowned at the mirror before walking over and sitting next to his hip. I looked down at him as he looked up at me.

"Please don't kill her." I said bluntly, biting the inside of my mouth lightly. He just smirked, looking from my head to my toes and back again with a smirk.

"But that's what will get to Stefan the most."

"Damon," I said in a soft tone, reaching up to brush the hair out of his face. "Please, I only ask that you don't kill my friends, and Elena is one of them."

"That sounds like an open invitation."

"I don't make a lot of friends Damon," I said, leaning over him slightly, my hair falling to rest on him. "So please don't take any of them away."

He looked up to me as I looked down at him. He looked calm, but in a flash he was on top of me. I bit back a yelp at the sudden movement, still not used to it at all.

"Damon." I warned. He looked deeply into my eyes, then down to my throat and back. He swallowed once, and then he got off of me. I had a feeling, that he had wanted to hurt me then, but he didn't, so I was grateful I wouldn't have to fight back and hurt him.

"Alright," He said, looking down at me with a gulp. "I won't kill...your friends..." He said it as though he were admitting to something he deeply regretted, but I just smiled and got on my knees on the bed and hugged him from behind.

"Thanks babes, you won't regret it."

"Hm, we'll see."

* * *

I was starting to think not coming to this dinner would've been more intelligent.

It was awkward central, Bonnie looked like she was watching paint dry at an agonizingly slow pace as she stared at her food, munching slowly. Finally, when Elena piped up, everything got moving.

"Mm! Bonnie, tell Ash and Stefan about your family." She began, and both I and Stefan quirked a brow. Bonnie looked between us both, not sure who was less awkward to look at.

"Parent's divorced, live with my dad." Bonnie said, but Elena just sighed.

"No, about the witches." Elena corrected, making me and Stefan look between her and Bonnie in interest, but when Bonnie shook her head, Elena explained. "Bonnie's family has a lineage of witches."

Oh, that's actually interesting, so was Bonnie a witch then? Quite probable, in fact I do believe Bella talking about a bloodline of distant relatives living only a days drive away from her. I smiled and listened as Bonnie and Stefan began talking, and I looked over to Elena who was sitting next to me and whispered.

"Looks like my help isn't needed huh?"

She just laughed.

"Actually, Bonnie, I was wondering, have you ever heard of a woman named Bella Viscon?" I asked curiously, she furrowed her brows and shook her head then, making me smile. "She's a friend of mine, and she claims her great great grandmother- or something like that- was related to the Bennett family, until they married out and spread across the land."

"Witches?" Elena asked, and I just grinned.

"I'd say that, but she'd beat me up if I said it out loud."

Before anybody could say anything, the doorbell rang, making Elena get up to answer. After a second, Stefan too got up and went to the door. Damon and Caroline must've arrived. I turned to Bonnie and smiled, trying to keep distracted.

"So Bonnie, what do you think of Stefan now?" I asked with a grin. Bonnie smiled, looking to Stefan and Elena and then back to me.

"He's alright, not what I thought he was."

Oh you have no idea honey.

"Ah Ash! You're here too? That's awesome, now everybody's here!" Caroline gushed before walking over to me. I grinned and said hello, before Elena walked into the room carrying a cake.

"Kay guys, I'll make some tea, why don't we all sit in the living room?" Elena offered, and we all sat down. I noticed that Caroline was being rather clingy, sitting in Damon's lap and all, but I ignored it and pretended not to recognize him.

"So Ash," Caroline began when everyone was seated with a cup of tea and a slice of cake. "You got away once, but you can't do it again."

I rolled my eyes, a smile breaking across my face in mock kindness. Fuck off, I don't want to talk about my life. Stefan and Damon raised a brow, but I just shook my head.

"Is that all you came here for? To hear your teacher's dirty little secrets?" I teased, but she shook her head.

"Not _those_ secrets! I'm talking about all this buzz." That made me quirk a brow, so Bonnie explained.

"Ah, you know, mysterious cool teacher blows into town, half the class crushing on her... Everybody wants to know about you." She said with a smile, making me quirk a brow.

"Clearly they don't know me that well." I said with a grin.

"Which is why we're talking now while I still have your attention!" Caroline insisted, snapping in the air. I wanted to hit her, she was getting on my nerves now.

"Want do you want to know?" I asked with a sigh. Caroline grinned then, and actually pulled out a piece of paper. Even Damon looked surprised.

"What? If I sell answers to people questions I can get a couple bucks!" She began, and I actually laughed a little at that.

"Okay, so how old are you anyway?"

"Well I'm supposed to be twenty four, but I'm actually nineteen." I said honestly, and Caroline looked at me with surprise. Everyone raised a brow or gave a look at that, Damon even mocked surprise too. I was fighting not to laugh- clearly acting was not in my list of future career choices.

"Ohhh, interesting, why'd you come here of all places to teach?" This made me shrug.

"A friend of mine asked me to fill her spot, she gave up teaching so I took her place. It's not that hard, dunno why most people need a degree." I muttered.

"Any hot brothers?" This made me raise a brow, but Caroline just ushered for me to continue. I laughed, actually thinking.

"If they're related to me, they better be." I said, taking a sip of my drink and giving Caroline a wink.

"How many?" She cooed, leaning forward off of Damon's laugh. Elena gave her a weird look, along with Bonnie, while Damon and Stefan seemed to be faking interest.

"Five older brothers." I said softly, not liking the path this was going down. Caroline was relentless though.

"Do you talk with your family much? Like as in, can you get me their digits?" Caroline teased, and I honestly couldn't believe she was saying this while sitting in Damon's lap. I actually looked at her with an incredulous look, Bonnie and Elena doing the same. Damon just rolled his eyes, but he didn't look at her once.

"Caroline!" Bonnie scolded, making Blondie roll her eyes.

"It's not for me! It's for you Bonnie. You can't be the only single one here!" She insisted, glancing at me as I grinned. "Wait, you're single? How are you single? You're like- smoking hot."

I snorted, taking another sip out of my cup. I wouldn't deny, flattery worked wonders, but not coming from shallow Caroline. Blondie gave me a look saying I should continue, so I figured throwing one truth out wouldn't hurt.

"I lost my parents when I was young, and got separated from my brothers when I got adopted out of the orphanage." I said flatly, to which Caroline squealed as Elena and Bonnie, even Stefan, gave me a heartfelt look.

"I'm sorry to hear that." Elena said, but I just shrugged.

"Life sucks, I got over it." I muttered, drinking some more of my tea. Caroline seemed ecstatic to hear that though.

"Oh my God, just wait until people get a load of this! I'm going to be a billionaire with a story like this!" She squealed, making Elena and Bonnie both give that brooding forehead look- they've been around Stefan too much I see...

"I mean," Caroline began, looking at the two and then at me. "Your personal life is yours alone, and I wouldn't want to be nosy."

Too late, dumbass.

"Right..." I muttered, not thinking too deeply about it, but then I looked at my empty cup and got up. "I'm going to go get more tea."

"I'll get some more too." Damon said, and when I looked over he was smirking at Stefan, no doubt the younger brother would be listening in on our conversation, so I rolled eyes inwardly and walked to the kitchen. I walked over to the kettle and poured some tea, before noticing that there was still a pile of plates on the dinner table. I went towards it, out of sight, but bit back a gasp when Damon grabbed me and pressed me to the wall so suddenly. He pressed a finger to my lips, and I raised a brow as he tapped a finger to his ear, then he smirked and I felt his hand on my ass. Squirming but trying to keep quiet, I glared at him before I realized he was reaching into my pocket for something.

Oh, my phone.

"So Ashlan, what do you think of Mystic Falls?" He cooed in his usual flirty tone. He opened the notes app, and began to press buttons on the I phone. I looked down at it as I replied.

"Oh you know, traditional small town, I heard from Stefan you're just passing through yourself." Damon glared at me for that, I just smirked in reply.

_I'm bored, want to get out of here? _Is what he said, so I grinned at the writing, but took my phone and began to write as quickly as possible, not nearly as quick as he could go with his super vampirism.

"I'm more of the, float where ever the wind blows me kind of guy. I'm sure you understand." He taunted with that sexy smirk as I showed the message on my phone.

_How? They'll suspect something. _

"I'm not sure I follow." I said before Damon rolled his eyes, before snatching my phone from me and tapping as fast as the machine could keep up with.

_You leave first, Brooding Forehead will think I'm chasing you down later. Win win if you ask me._

"I think you will eventually. By the way, you smell...incredible tonight." He said this as he looked at me darkly, and I knew this was for Stefan. I raised my hand as though to slap him, before he raised a hand and shook it as though chastising me. I bite my lip, and he made a motion as though he was willing to bite it for me. Remembering the text, I re-read it before shrugging and showing my reply to him.

_I'm finishing my tea first._

Before he could argue, even though I saw that 'You bitch' look on his face, I grabbed my tea and walked back into the living room. Stefan visibly relaxed then, and I bit back a smirk. I listened to the teens talk, but honestly I was bored after five seconds. Suddenly my phone vibrated, and I looked at it- from Damon?

_Here's your chance._

"Ah, Tanner's being an ass." I muttered with a frown, then I pocketed to phone and stood up, drinking my tea. Damon came to sit down, but raised an eyebrow at me and grinned.

"Leaving so soon?" He asked, and I wanted to punch him for putting me on the spot. I nodded, before sipping the rest of my tea, trying to think of an excuse. When I drew the cup from my lips, I frowned.

"Yeah, Tanner's been criticizing my ability to mark papers- how can I give a failing grade to creativity? Anyway, he wants to talk with me about it, so I better go now or I'll be seeing tall dark and bitter tomorrow." I said, Elena and Bonnie both laughing a bit. Caroline grinned, but then I went to put my cup in the washer. When I returned, Elena, Bonnie, and Caroline all gave me a hug. Then I looked to Stefan and raised a brow.

"What? Don't tell me giving a friend a hug is illegal- I am a friend, aren't I?" I teased, to which Stefan gave a small smile as he hugged me. He was a bit leaner than Damon, but also a bit smaller, strange- why am I comparing him to Damon? He stepped away a moment later, and I held my arms out to hug Damon too.

"Don't feel bad about not hugging him." Stefan said- wait did he just joke?! Alert the media! Still, I just laughed it off as Damon gave a grin.

"Well aren't I special." Damon joked, before I wrapped my arms around him. He wrapped his big arms around me, and for the first time in a long time, I felt so small. There was a pause in our hug, as if time hesitated too, before we both let go. I waved goodbye to everybody, before walking out the door once my coat and shoes were on.

I was probably walking for ten minutes, when a certain car rolled up beside me.

"You don't really think I'm going to leave you to walk home, do you?" He taunted, but I just raised a brow.

"What about Caroline?" I asked, to which he smirked.

"She's home already, doesn't take long to get to her house." He said, and I smiled a bit too before hopping into the car.

"So," I began, turning to grin wickedly at him. "Where to, Mister Tall Dark Hot Sex?" I joked, to which he smirked back.

"Where ever my fair lady wishes."

* * *

**Okay... two reviews...cool cool...Little bummed out, BUT IT'S OKAY! BECAUSE I'm watching the rest of the season 1 episodes, and then I'm gunna write the next chapter! Woot!  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: So... anybody liking Damon and Ash's relationship? **

**I wanted to build them up first, then introduce Delena later! BTW, I am a firm Delena hater, simply because I don't think Elena's good enough for Damon, I honestly think he could do better... buuut I also really hate how upset Elena gets over everything. Call me a bitch, but c'mon, at some point you just have to say 'fuck it'.  
**


	11. The Wrong State of Mind

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'Running Up The Hill' -_Placebo

_**Chapter** 10  
_

_"The Wrong State of Mind"_

* * *

"We have got to stop doing that." I muttered, rubbing the side of my neck, my wound had healed a few days ago. Damon chuckled before looking down at me.

"At least you're not the one with caramel sauce all over them." He teased, and I uncurled myself from the floor and looked up at him. He sat up with a smirk, and my eyes traveled down to his sticky looking chest. I cupped my mouth, but then found the same substance on my mouth. Looking at him with a mortified expression, I put two and two together.

"Looks like Barbie isn't the only one willing to lick me from head to toe." He winked, and I had to double check he and I hand the rest of our clothes on. I had on his shirt and underwear, but he was missing his.

"What the hell did we do?" I asked, sitting back on my legs as Damon swung his legs off the bed and leaned closer to me.

"Came back, had some shots, then you complained you wanted a sundae so I offered to be your sundae and you licked caramel sauce off my body and stripped naked. Then you stole my shirt and passed out on the floor." He said as though he were talking about the weather. I stood up and sighed, there goes my dignity down the drain.

"Well then, guess I better get ready for work." I muttered, walking into the bathroom. My hair, which had been braided prior to shots so I didn't get any hair in my drink, was currently a relentless mess, so I went to brush it- but the brush was gone. A low whistle brought my eyes over to the older Salvatore, who just sat there with a smirk. I rolled my eyes before going over to grab it, but he moved it out of my reach. I glared at him as he raised his brows in invitation, so I launched at him and grabbed the brush. However, that ended in me straddling him as he laid back on the bed.

"I could get used to this." He said with a smirk, but I shook my head before getting off of him. He followed me back into the bathroom, and stood behind me as I tried to pull out my hair. He chuckled before taking the brush and strands of hair from my hands and gently brushing it out.

"You're good at this." I marveled when I saw my combed and smooth hair once he was done. He ran his fingers through the strands, resting his chin on the top of my head.

"I used to comb my mother's hair for her when she got sick." He said, though he sounded far off. I smiled before grabbing his hand that was now around my waist, interlocking our fingers.

"You sound like a kind son." I teased, a little worried when he smiled too, his eyes closed.

"You should've met me in 1864, I was the prefect gentleman." He said, and I felt my eyes widen.

"When you were human?"

"Hmm."

Wow, Damon was a lot older than I thought he was. It made me realize how young I felt compared to him. My free hand began to caress his arm around my stomach, and I looked up to the mirror to see Damon looking back at me, but the look in his eye was off. I sucked in a breath when I saw the veins pulsing and squirming on his face.

Spinning around, I looked him right in the eye. Was it bad to think his eyes were never so blue before? I found both my hands going to his face, and his mouth dropped open slightly to reveal his fangs. I pressed my thumbs along the fangs, a lot longer than my own, before my thumbs smoothed over the bottom of his eyes, over the veins that were pulsing.

"You need to stop tempting me." He said, looking me dead in the eye. I gulped, worried for a second he was going to bite me-

Oh, well there's an idea.

"Then bite me." I said softly, but firmly. His brow furrowed at me, but I just smiled. "I trust you, Damon. Do you trust me?" I asked, smiling a bit bigger. When he pulled my body against his though, I felt my heart skip a beat. His face was inches from mine, before he softly pressed his lips against my pulse.

"You need to relax, or it'll hurt more." He whispered, planting soft kisses on my neck. I sighed in relaxation, my whole body going soft in his arms as he cradled my head with one hand, and my waist in the other. He looked up to me, but I only glanced at him before I felt the pinch of him biting into my skin. I don't know why, but it wasn't at all like the last time.

Last time, I really thought I was going to die. I felt panicked, afraid, but now I felt...calm. My heart was thudding in my ears, and I felt as though my body was relaxing. Sot sighs escaped me every few seconds, and we stayed like that for almost a minute. It felt so...intimate... I almost wanted him to not stop, I liked the feeling of his hands gripping me tighter, his scent imprinted in my nose and I sniffed his hair.

I moaned softly.

"Damon," I began, but the sound of him drinking my life away made me realize he hadn't stopped yet. "Damon." I repeated.

He pulled his head away, and gasped for air. Blood rolled out of his mouth, down his chin, and slithered down his chest and abs. I watched the trail, suddenly curious as to why they enjoyed the taste of blood so much. I found myself pushing him against the wall, my heartbeat still pounding in my own ears, and I caught the end trail near his navel, right before the hem of his pants. My tongue launched out to stop it, and I was expecting some sort of coppery taste, I had never tasted blood before. Instead, it was this strange taste, like copper yes, but it was mixed with a strange taste- something sweet, like cane sugar. I found my tongue following the trail back up his abs, licking softly at the blood between the grooves of his muscles, up his pecks, and then I licked one long stroke of blood off his chin.

When I reached his lips, I didn't stop, I began to lick the blood off his lips too. It was only when he sat me on the sink that the thudding in my ears stopped, and I could hear his heaving breathing. His veins were rippling around his eyes, and I knew he was tempted to bite me again. I smirked, leaning my face near his. He licked my bottom lip, but stopped when I pulled to whisper into his ear.

"I _do_ taste delicious." I purred, grinning as I pulled away. Damon smirked deviously at me.

"You little vixen, are you sure you're a virgin?" He asked, to which I laughed.

"Virgins can still have fun babes." I said confidently, even though I thought about it for a moment. I honestly didn't have a price for my virginity, it was just that, I always thought it should go to somebody I really liked. Just to mean something to me at least, to have some sort of value in life.

He gave me space, so I hopped off the sink and looked into the mirror, moving my hair away to look at the wound.

"I got you pretty good." He teased, before surprising me by biting his wrist and holding it in front of me.

"What are you doing?" I asked, a little surprised as I stared at the slowly healing wound.

"Drink it, it'll heal your wound. I tend to get a little... rough sometimes." He said wickedly, but I just pushed his wrist away.

"Nuh uh, this one stays for now." I said, and he quirked a brow, making me grin. "Well since the last one's gone, wouldn't Stefan notice and get a bit freaked out?" I challenged, and he grinned.

"Look at you, thinking devious plans all on your own. I like it." He said in a clicked tone at the end before picking me up and twirling me around. This made me dizzy, but I laughed anyways.

"Damon!"

"You really like screaming my name, don't you?"

"Bite me."

"Already did."

I sighed, men- couldn't live with them, and life was too boring without them.

* * *

"Alright class, I'm glad to say the lowest mark was a B!" I said, grinning as everyone gave a shout for joy. "So as a reward, you guys can leave five minutes early." That's when a real shout came out as a lot of kids scrambled to leave. I smirked, enjoying the fact that they weren't as mindless anymore. I'd gotten attached to this school, enjoying my job for real.

"Ash?" Stefan began, and I looked at him with a small smile. This was when the real fun began.

"Stefan, what can I do to help you?" I asked, noticing everybody else had leaped out of the room. Stefan glanced down at the bandage on my neck, swallowed hard, then looked back at me.

"I noticed you have a new wound, another raccoon?" Stefan asked, to which I pretended to be embarrassed about it. I laughed a little, because I really would be embarrassed if it were real.

"Yeah, those little buggers, I should really solve my issues with nature, you know, be one with nature? Maybe then my life wouldn't suck so much." I teased, to which Stefan just nodded with his brooding forehead look. Hm, I needed to spice this up, but how?

Oh, this should be good.

"I'm glad you're alright." Stefan said, sounding sincere. I grinned and nodded, going back to cleaning my stuff up.

"Yeah, I'm just happy you brother was there to save my ass." I said, practically hearing him tense up then.

"Damon? Damon was there?" He asked, and I wondered what wheels had started turning then.

"Yeah, he saved me from the nasty racoons. My hero and all that." I looked down to the floor and paused, before looking back at him. "Listen, do you think you could give me his number? I never got it last night- ah, that's wrong, Caroline's dating him and it probably seems awkward but really, my intentions are pure! I just want to thank him!" I insisted, pretending to talk too much, while I hadn't thought it out, it still just kind of flowed naturally out of my mouth.

I'm a natural at lying, who knew?

Not me, that's who.

"Uh, listen," Stefan began, the brooding looking a little darker then. My god it was like this guy lived under a permanent rain cloud, always so dreary. "Damon's not the best guy to hang around. It would actually be better if you kept you distance."

"I'm not-"

"Whatever the reason, Ash, I can guarantee you'll thank me later. But please, please keep away from my brother."

My brow furrowed, of course I had no intentions of listening to him, but I was also curious- why did Stefan hate his brother so much? Vice Versa? What was going on between the two? Was it something really bad?

"Alright, I'll try." I said, giving a soft smile of admittance. Stefan smiled too, before wishing me a good day and walking out of the classroom.

Little did he know though.

He had just peaked my curiosity.

* * *

_The day was filled with boredom. Tanner had specifically told me today was a Pep Rally and the first major game. He also specifically said not to show up. So as a way to say fuck off, I handed him the rest of my work to correct before walking to the hotel. Once there, I wrote a new chapter for my next Best Seller, and then drank tea as I listened to Kings of Leon and read a book. _

_I had drifted off sometime after than, and unbeknownst to me, right into a trap. _

_**"Ashlan Madison Corral! What have you done!" **_

_I screamed, looking around me. She was sitting in a chair across from me, nothing was around us but the giant armchairs we sat in, and the fire next to us. A small smile made it to my lips, despite her whacking me across the head- we weren't that far apart- which I winced at.  
_

_"That hurt!" I cried, rubbing the sore spot. Bella rolled her eyes and glared at me.  
_

_"You had me worried sick! I thought you had been killed! Yet here you are, running off with my sister's killer- a vampire no less! This sounds like some bad country song!" She cried, shaking her head. I bit back a laugh at that, but then looked into her dark eyes.  
_

_"I know Damon's not a good person, but he's not bad either." I said, to which she sighed as though over exhausted as she fell back in her chair.  
_

_"Oh no! I'm too late! He's already gotten into you mind and infected you brain!" She wailed, but I just sighed.  
_

_"Maria's dead." I said softly, and she looked at me, stopping mid-cry. "Damon said he would help me find her killer." I said, but Bella just looked at me with wide eyes.  
_

_"No, you can't believe him! He must've killed her, why else would he take you along? He plans to use and kill you Ashi." She said, her face turning pale despite her dark skin. I just shook my head, staying as calm as I could. At least she couldn't hear my heartbeat.  
_

_"Bells, I know he didn't kill her. I know it might seem stupid, but I trust Damon. And if that trust is the death of me, then it was my decision, not Damon's and not yours." I said firmly, but she just stared at me with wide eyes.  
_

_"I have be protecting you for years! I took you in when nobody else would, and I love you like my own daughter Ashi, so you need to realize. What I do, I am only doing it for you." She said lowly, and I knew she was daring for me to counter. I licked my lips and smiled at her.  
_

_"Bella, I never did thank you for saving my sorry as all those times, did I?" I laughed, and she gave a very snappy 'Mhmm' as a reply. "Thank you, really, for protecting me, but you can't do it for my whole life. I need to make my own mistakes, I need to make my own choices. What value does life have if it wasn't lived by me?" I asked, and she bit her lip before looking to my hand as it grasped hers, before looking me in the eye. She leaned forward and kissed my head, before pulling back to smile at me as she brushed my hair out of my eyes.  
_

_"You and your mother, both the wildest things I have ever met." She said softly, and I smiled softly, before she let my hand go.  
_

_"Thank you, for everything Bella." I said softly, and she just smiled at me. I felt her hands on my skin, and looked down to see her holding my necklace. The smooth tear drop shaped pendant that was a smoldering mass of swirls of black and gold. It was tied to a chain that was wrapped around it and was long and thin. It looked frail, but Bella had always said it would never break.  
_

_"This will always protect you, Ashi, don't ever give up. I would hate to see that fire die." She said, and I smiled before returning her kiss on the forehead.  
_

_"I love you Bella, and I hope you keep safe." I practically whispered, and she smiled back before placing a hand over my eyes.  
_

_Just like that, the dream was gone._

* * *

I awoke to soft fingers rolling over the side of my face.

My eyes fluttered open, and I looked up into those brilliant blue orbs.

"Damon..?" I asked, feeling a bit groggy. He gave me a soft look, before I reached up and held his hand. With a smile, I kissed his fingers, before letting go when he pulled back. I turned onto my side, looking up to him as my nose peaked out of under the covers. He looked down at me, before turning away and pulling off his clothes.

I yawned, raising a brow as he stripped down to his shirt and boxers. He turned back to me, and I pulled back the covers without questions while scooting over a bit. To my surprise, he pulled me closer to him as he crawled in. I felt so warm against his skin, tingles shot through my body as our legs intertwined. His knuckles continued to brush my face as he settled, looking at me intently. I smiled up at him, raising a brow.

"You seem tentative tonight." I teased, but his expression didn't change. I swallowed, a bit worried for him then, but at the same time I couldn't help but wonder what it felt like to brush my owns fingers over his face. So, very slowly, I reached up and cupped his cheek, rubbing my thumb over it. A few seconds later, sleep became too demanding, so I dropped my hand as he dropped his, and he pulled me to his chest.

"You know I'm not blonde, right?" I asked, meaning to tease, but I was so tired it might not have come out right. Him stroking my hair back was also very distracting.

"I think I can make an acceptation." He whispered, and I fell asleep in his arms that night.

* * *

_It's funny._

_As humans, we focus on all the bad in our life. We always feel we need to prepare ourselves for the pain that's about to come, but in truth, we're preparing for the wrong thing. _

_As humans, we are bound by one rule. We know everything must end eventually. Nothing is eternal- even Vampires. Eventually something will happen, and they will be no more. As tough as it is to say, it is the facts. There isn't any true immortality, eventually we all will end, but isn't that what makes life so precious? _

_There is a time limit, in which we must complete everything that is important to us. Which is why we see value in things. Which is probably why Damon doesn't see values in most things. I think he's forgotten- not everything is immortal like him. He will stay the same until he feels no need to, but everything else will fade away. Even vampires have a time limit to enjoy something before it dies. The difference is, the immortals have another chance to start over, where as humans only have one. _

_I think we need to focus more on what's in life, what's so precious that makes color beam across the sky in our eyes. The people that are precious, the objects, the interests. I feel as though, humans are more concerned with the quantity rather than quality of their days now. It feels like, if you were given three days to live, everyone would use it looking for a cure to their deaths, but what about those rare few that don't? They see death as the finish line to a race they never want to win, but right before that finish line is their chance to see what really goes on in the world. _

_I say this, because that night I fell asleep in Damon's arms. I could feel his arms holding me against him, hear his heartbeat, his breathing, and I realized- my life would be grey without him. I had been so focused on the quantity of days, that I had forgotten to enjoy the quality of days I had left. _

_Damon would leave me, when and why, I didn't know. I knew he wouldn't hang around when I turn old and grey, I wouldn't expect him to, but I knew that when that day came, a light would be taken from me, one I would never get back. _

_So as I slept there, curled up against him like I was meant to, I remembered every single detail I could. Even after waking before him, I just watched him silently, because I knew, one day I wouldn't be able to. I try not to think of that day, but I have a horrible suspicion it was drawing much closer than I thought it would. _

_So until that day comes, I'm going to enjoy every single moment we spend together, I'm going to live as much as I can. _

_So I pray, that he does too._

* * *

**Not bad for two hours of writing, uh?  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: So... anybody liking Damon and Ash's relationship? Gotta say what you feel about it!  
**

**Okay, I think it's nap time, haha.  
**


	12. And Suddenly It's Real

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'What If I Told You' -_Jason Walker

_**Chapter** 11  
_

_"And Suddenly It's Real"_

* * *

_Secrets. _

_Everybody has them, but not a lot are ever shared.  
_

_Of course not, or it wouldn't be a secret anymore. I never understood why so many people kept secrets. Some were understandable, being a vampire would be hard to explain to the world without majority trying to stake you. There are some secrets though, that I never understood why they were kept.  
_

_Why didn't Maria tell me she was planning on leaving? Was there some bigger picture I missed? What about why Damon is really here? You can't tell em he'd bore himself with this town, you can't tell me he's staying for me. We're comfortable around each other, yes, but we're not nearly close enough for that. At least, I don't think we are. Yet I know he's still keeping secrets from me, but I wonder a lot- if I asked, would he explain? Were we that close yet?  
_

_I wondered about other secrets too- why Bella took so long to explain what happened to my Mother. She only told me on my eighteenth birthday- but even then she told me there were some things she wasn't sure of. I knew she was lying, Bella had been my Motherly Figure for five years, and in those years I had come to know her very well.  
_

_She told me she knew my Mother, but it wasn't her place to explain everything about my past. Despite how much I tried to get her to explain, she always brushed it off.  
_

_Why was she keeping secrets? I know I'm more curios than majority of the world, and I tend to stick my nose where it doesn't belong, but is it fair for someone else to judge what is safe and what isn't for me? I think of Elena and Stefan, and sometimes I wonder- how will she react once she knows? That kind of secret can be tough to open up about. I find myself hoping she can cope, because in truth, I don't want to be abnormal in this. I want Elena to accept Stefan the way I accept Damon.  
_

_Actually, I think I got the short end of the stick, Stefan never tried to eat her.  
_

_Yet._

* * *

I woke up that morning, and I felt a little bit better than usual.

The skies were clear- it was a gorgeous day today. When I rubbed my forehead though, my hand came across a sticky note.

Damon you-

_Morning Red. I've got some business to take care of. Be sure to be ready for the Founder's Ball- you're my date! PS: You snore really, really badly. You should fix that._

You little shit head.

Ah hell, it's too early to even think straight yet. Today was Saturday, and as I stretched and rolled around in the cool sheets, I felt a strange sense of renewal. I felt like something had changed today, so I decided to roll with it.

Most of my day was spent as such:

10AM- Blast old rock tune and jump around in Damon's button down shirt, using the broom as a mic.

12PM- Cry my eyes out to the Notebook.

2PM- Get lost in writing chapters to my newest story.

3:50PM- Realize I was almost an hour behind schedule, and dive into the shower and blow dry my hair.

Lucky for me, Damon seemed accustomed to my lack of remembrance of this thing called time. He walked in the door after I got my underwear on and had completed my make up and drying my wavy waist length hair.

"I told you watching the Notebook isn't a good idea." He sighed, and I just rolled my eyes and looked at the bag in his hand. He tossed it at me, and I pulled out a white halter top dress with light blue outlining.

"So?" I asked, pulling it on, before tying it behind my neck. Damon rolled his eyes and grabbed a pair of one inch heels- the biggest heel I will ever wear- that were the same blue as the dress. I almost wanted to laugh- he color co-ordinates better than I do.

"The last time you watched it you called in sick because you had this 'passion to write sad fiction'," He said in this unbelievably sexy low voice. "And I found you still sitting in the same spot ten hours later." He said, rolling his eyes, but I just shrugged.

"It's an author thing, you wouldn't understand." I said with a smirk as I spritzed some perfume on me. When I put it down, Damon grabbed it and sprayed even more behind my ears and on my neck. Then he wrapped a gold scarf around my neck, and it actually looked cute. It also hid my bite mark from view.

"What are you doing?" I asked, to which he smirked at me in the mirror.

"Masking your scent so I can't smell you." He said as though it were obvious, but I just raised a brow.

"Okay..."

"It's a vampire thing, you wouldn't understand." He said, and I just rolled my eyes as he towed me out by my hand to his car. When we started to drive, it started to dawn on me something was off.

"Wait, what about Caroline?" I asked, curious.

"I told her that I wouldn't go with her because her mother's the sheriff, and I prefer not getting shot in the balls." He said in an almost honest tone. I laughed, shaking my head at him.

"Oh don't worry babes, I can mingle when we get there, you and Blondie can have the time of your life." I teased with a grin. He looked over to me and raised a brow, but didn't say anything as we parked by the Lockwood Mansion.

There was a huge line up, but we eventually got inside. Once there, I spotted Caroline, so I muttered as low as I could.

"There's your blonde."

He looked to me, and then to Caroline, before smirking and whispering in my ear.

"I'd much prefer to stay here, she talks faster than I can listen." He said casually as I grabbed some champagne. I laughed, shaking my head at him.

"Damon, you do realize if you don't go to her then I will." I stated with a smirk, making him drop his.

"You wouldn't."

"Caroline! Good to see you." I said with a smile as she made her way over to us. She grabbed Damon's arm, almost looking possessive, but I just smirked.

"And the claws come out! Relax Caroline, I'm just a friend of Damon's." I said with a smile, looking up to Damon and then down at her. She gave an awkward smile, but seemed to relax slightly. I noticed Damon was rolling his eyes, but when Caroline smiled up at him, he smiled charmingly back.

"And that's my cue to leave." I said with a smile, before turning around and walking away. I wandered around for a while, before running into Stefan and Elena.

"Hey you two!" I said with a grin, giving each a hug. "Having any fun?" I asked, wiggling my brows. Elena laughed a bit, and Stefan smiled.

"Yes, who was your date today?" Elena asked, and I just smiled.

"Ah, well Damon asked me to escort him in, trying to keep a low profile in front of the Sheriff, but he's off with Caroline right now." I said, nodding to confirm my story with myself. Stefan looked a little upset when I said Damon's name, but otherwise they both didn't say anything about it. I wondered if Elena didn't know yet, and I was actually quite curious.

"I see, Elena would you like a drink?" Stefan asked, smiling at her. She nodded, before looking into the crowd.

"I'm going to go and talk to Bonnie, but I'll be right back." She said before wandering off. I sipped my drink as Stefan turned to me.

"Walk with me?" He asked, and I shrugged before following as I sipped my drink. We walked right past the drinks, and into the room holding all the artifacts on display. There were a lot less people here, and it was also a lot quieter.

"Listen, I know Damon might be trying to lure you in, but I really think you should stay away from him." He said as I wandered around, looking at all the artifacts. I looked at the original guest registry, curious when I saw the names on there.

**Stefan Salvatore**

**Damon Salvatore**

Hmph, so Damon really was ancient. Go figure, I thought he was just screwing with my head. However, as I kept looking, I found another name that piqued my curiosity.

**Madison Corral**

"Huh, look at all these names," I said, glaring at the familiar name. "I never knew I was related to the founding families." I muttered, glaring at the name. It bothered me, because I had never been to Mystic Falls before in my life, and here I was finding my family had settled here. Stefan bent down next to me, looking at the name as well.

"She was beautiful," Stefan said, and I glanced over to him in curiosity. He looked back to me and began to explain. "My ancestor wrote in his journal about a woman named Madison Corral. He wrote about how he planned to have one of his sons take her hand in marriage."

"I see, so what else does this journal say about Madison?" I asked, smiling a bit, but Stefan shook his head.

"The journal doesn't contain much, it's said that he kept his darkest secrets to the grave with him, but he did speak of her as an orphan who came to live with him and his sons."

"Stefan and Damon?" I asked with a knowing smirk. He furrowed his brow at me, but otherwise nodded. "So are they the original brothers? Is it some kind of tradition to name brothers after those two?" I asked, actually curious with what lie he could come up with on the spot.

"Uh, I think it's just coincidence." He said with a small smile. I was a little wigged out with how much eye contact he was making, but otherwise looked around.

"Interesting," I said, looking through other items. "And as for your comment earlier," I said, turning to look at him. "I have no authority over what chases after me, human or not."

That made him look up quickly, looking at me with surprise, but I just smiled.

"Raccoons?" I offered, to which he bit back a sigh and smiled too. "Anyway, I think you better get back to Elena, people will talk." I whispered the end, giving a wink. He chuckled at that, before we both walked back to find Elena.

"Hey, I think Jenna was looking for you." She said, to which I quirked a brow before walking off to find her. When I did, I noticed she was walking away from what's his name- you know, that news reporter guy- uhhh Logan Fell? Right, right. I met her at the bar, smirking.

"So, you and cute reporter guy." I teased, but she just rolled her eyes.

"That was before I left town, now it's just sad." She said, chugging her drink before getting another one. I laughed, happy to see a loose Jenna.

"Men, can't live with them, but life's boring without them." I teased, to which she rolled her eyes before clinking glasses with me.

"Amen to that." She said before we both downed another glass. We talked for a while longer, until Logan came up again, which was my cue to flee. Jenna glared at me as I grinned and ran around the corner, before heading to find Damon. I caught Caroline and Stefan walking out together, but ignored it and walked in.

Damon and Elena were talking, so I just looked around, listening to their conversation.

"What the history books left out, was that the people in the burning church weren't there by accident. They were believed to be union sympathizers and were rounded up to be burned alive." Damon said, and from my place across the room I let the gears in my head turn. Sympathizers, or vampires?

"Stefan and Damon had somebody they loved very much inside." Damon said, and I could hear the sadness in his voice.

"Who was inside?" Elena asked.

"A woman, doesn't it always come down to the love of a woman?" Damon said, and I had to fight not to turn around and be noticed. The gears in my head were grinding with how fast they worked- if a woman was there in the church, if Stefan and Damon both loved her, this church must hold something. Damon must want something from the old church.

What though?

Was he back in Mystic Falls to get this thing? Wait- he said a woman was inside, was she still there? I could hear Elena talking, but it blurred out as things started piecing together.

Damon comes back to Mystic Falls.

He torments Stefan relentlessly.

He wants to tear the town apart.

He was in love with a woman who died in the church.

Damon came back to Mystic Falls to get the woman who 'burned' in the church, and he's willing to tear the town apart to figure out how, and he torments Stefan relentlessly because he blames him for- for the woman being there?

It would make sense, that would explain a lot of things, but where does Elena tie in? Is she just a pawn for Damon to play with, or is she something more? I started to think of Maria, 'YOU ARE NEXT', was I being paranoid, or was there really something I was missing?

Elena and Damon had left the room then, so I figured now would be a good time to walk to the bathroom. I went in, and glared at myself in the mirror. I wanted to splash water on my face, but I couldn't because of all the makeup. Stupid makeup, go die.

I walked out of the bathroom, and looked for Damon for a while in the party, unfortunately that seemed useless, so I walked outside to the pond and called louder.

"Damon!" I called, at least half a dozen times. When he didn't answer, I tried to phone him. Imagine my surprise when I found his phone buzzing a few yards from me. Picking it up, I shrugged. Must've gotten lucky tonight. The least he could've done was drive me home though. So instead of thinking on it, I walked to his car- surprised to find the key in the ignition, and then drove it back to the hotel.

I really needed to find an apartment soon, the cost of staying here was starting to rack up to high.

Meh, I'll make Damon take care of that.

* * *

**Holy fuck guys, awesome reviewing! I know this chapter's short, but honestly nothing really happens during the founders ball, nothing Ash sees anyways... Next chapter is gunna be... hot... so if I get enough reviews I might update tonight!  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: So...you guys want spicier scenes? I thought that licking blood scene last chapter was pretty hot. Apparently not, so what would you like to see Dash (Damon/Ashlan) do to each other? Suggestions? I'm open to it!  
**


	13. Rough Side to Gentle

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'If I Could Be Like That' -3 Doors Down_

_**Chapter** 12  
_

_"Rough Side to Gentle"_

* * *

_Life sucks again.  
_

_It's been three days, and the asshole hasn't made an appearance. I was actually kind of worried now, the first day I had brushed it off- Damon's brave and strong, no way somebody could take him down- but after three days, I narrowed down to three conclusions.  
_

_1. Damon left town. As in left without even saying goodbye, which would piss me off, but I doubted that to be a fact.  
_

_2. He'd been sleeping at Caroline's, or carrying out whatever business for the past three days an just didn't care to tell me.  
_

_3. Someone got to him and he-  
_

_Fuck I don't even want to write it! I bit my lip, nervous beyond belief. What if it were true? What if Damon really was- no, I can't think that way, but I don know somebody who could point me in the right direction._

* * *

"Stefan! Just the person I wanted to see." I said with a smile. Sexy Suds car wash was currently in session, and Caroline insisted everybody get into 'sexy gear' and work. I even pitched in- getting an even tan was my cup of tea- and bought a lime bikini with black bordering, and my hair was even in a sexy semi messy braid. Most of my morning had been spent keeping cat fights from happening between people who I liked, and encouraging between people I disliked. Plus with no Tanner present, I could do whatever I wanted.

Some people might call me cold for not caring that Damon killed him, but my only worry was if Damon killed my friends. Far as I'm concerned, Tanner was an asshole, and I wouldn't miss him.

Stefan hadn't shown up all day, making me triple suspicious about his reasoning, but when he did it was like the skies had parted and the world was beautiful again.

"Hello Ash." He said with a smile as I sidled next to him with a grin.

"I was just wondering," I began, noticing he really did have that romantic stare- trippy- "Where your tall dark and handsome brother has gone." I said with a huge grin, and to my surprise, Stefan continued to smile.

"He uh, he left town about two days ago." Stefan said, and my smile dropped instantly.

Stefan wouldn't be happy if Damon had the chance to come back and ruin him. Did he- oh no. Oh fuck.

"Oh, okay." I said quietly before walking away. My palms felt sweaty as I went into the school, pulling a bobby pin out of my hair to get into the office, I flicked on the computer and tapped anxiously on the table, the surface clacking against my rings. Panic was setting in, and I started to worry. There was only one place he could be hiding him...

Got it.

The directions to the boarding house.

The unfortunate thing was I would have to walk there, and it's over an hour away. Fuck, I thanked the heavens I decided to wear sneakers, and took off at a jog down the street, away from prying eyes of the school. I really needed to get into better shape, I was barely jogging ten minutes and I was huffing and puffing. Strength and speed were more my thing- endurance? Pfft hell no!

When the boarding house came into sight, I paused to catch my breath- jogging took half an hour off the trip, but I was still exhausted. Sneaking inside, I was amazed at the size of the place. Then I shook my head- focus!

I pulled off my shoes quietly, in an attempt to make less noise. If both vampires had been away prior to a month or two ago, that meant that somebody else must be here- ad I prayed to God they were human.

Each time the floor creaked, I winced, waited, and then proceeded with extra caution. Making my way up the stairs, I came across multiple rooms, but all of them were void of life- though three looked lived in. Then I went downstairs and came across the kitchen, dining room, and a few other rooms. No Damon though, I was starting to get worried.

_"If I concentrate hard enough, I can hear your heartbeat from my apartment." _

_"Covering up your scent."_

Thinking of this, in a last ditch effort, I went into the kitchen and grabbed a knife and a long hand towel. Holding the knife up, I cut a small nick on my wrist, just enough to draw some blood, and set it on the counter before I began to walk around again. As I walked down one of the hallways, I heard a muffled groan. Hesitating, I backed up and looked at the wall. Something was off, so I felt around for some sort of hitch.

Then wall gave way when I pulled on a small curve in it, revealing a stairwell. Gulping, I slowly made my way down it, and continued all the way into the bottom.

"Damon?" I whispered, hearing him groan. I found him lying on the ground behind a really heavy looking door. He looked up to me when I came closer, and I couldn't help the smile pulling across my face.

"Hey," He said weakly, stumbling as he tried to stand. "About time you found me. Now open the door." He said as he fell against it. I was about to open it, but then I stopped.

_"I was more worried about stopping myself."_

"Lani," He whispered. "Open the door." I shook my head though. If I did, I had no doubt Damon would drink me dry- whether he meant to or not. If I didn't though... well that defeated the whole purpose behind coming now wouldn't it?

"Hang on." I said, before tying the hand towel as tightly as I could in the curve of my armpit. It cut off my circulation, so I then stuck my arm through the bars in the opening of the door.

"Drink, there is no way in the seven layers of hell I'm letting you out yet." I said sharply, wincing as he bit down with a lot of force. He was drinking for almost three minutes, but that was when I decided he needed to stop.

"Damon let go," I said, but he didn't stop. "Damon you're hurting me." I warned, but I should've known. On a full stomach he had problems, what about now?

"Damon that hurts!" I cried, and he finally let go. My arm fell limp when he let go, but I withdrew quickly and let the towel fall off of me. I winced, pained from the sudden surge of blood through my arm. It felt like needles were flying through me, but a groan from Damon brought me back.

"Lani, I need you to listen very carefully." Damon said slowly, and I looked up to listen. "I want you to go upstairs and sit in the last room on the left. And I don't want you to leave that room until I come back."

"Damon, I'm not leaving you al-"

"If you don't I can guarantee you will die."

My heart leaped to my throat then, and I only nodded my head. Understanding filling me as he looked at me with those eyes- he looked like a real predator now.

"Now open the door and run as fast as you can." He whispered, and my hands went to open the lock.

"No!" Someone shouted, and this man came flying at me and pinned me to the wall. I cried out as my shoulder dug painfully into the wall, but I managed to kick the lock open to the door. Damon came flying out, snapping the man's neck in a second, before his eyes landed on me. The veins on his face were going crazy, his teeth elongated to full length. My erratic heartbeat probably didn't help either, and he stared at me so intensely.

"Damo-"

"Run." He growled shortly, and I took off up the stairs. He chased me up the stairs, and I screamed as he dove for me, but he pushed me into the sunlight of a window, and it burned him so badly he leaped away shouting. I kept on running, and running through the house. I slammed into walls when I didn't make the turn, and when I made it to the front door I opened it just in time for him to be burned again. I didn't leave though, and instead stayed just in the sunlight.

"Damon." I said again, watching him stalk me from the shadows. His eyes standing out against the dark, chilling me to the bone.

"You have no idea, how much I want to rip your throat out." He growled, his face so intense I didn't recognize him. I backed another step away, watching him stay just inches from the sunlight. A little closer and he could-

"Damon, you need to calm down." I said, but even my voice was shaking. "You-you need to relax and I can help you." I insisted, looking over my shoulder. It would be dark in less than an hour, and I had less than an hour to help him or he'd kill. He might not keep his promise, he might even kill me.

"You should be running like hell, I can't get you now but in about an hour god knows what will happen." He growled, and I knew better than anyone that his nature was dominating him right now. I gulped, before I began to back away slowly.

"Run, run to somewhere I won't find you. I want you to run and hurry up." Damon insisted, the veins on his face still going crazy.

"Damon-"

"I said run!" He shouted at me, before I turned tail and ran as fast as I could into town. I ran all the way to the Gilbert's, and knocked frantically on the door. Jenna opened it and I gasped in surprise, feeling tense. Jenna gave me a look, but I shook my head.

"Ah, water water water!" I said, pointing to my mouth. Jenna walked me in, giving me a glass and I inhaled the sink.

"Is everything okay?" She asked, but I gulped one more glass before shaking my head.

"Ah yeah, I'm just ridiculously unfit right now, my mouth was so dry that I thought it would start bleeding." I muttered, showing my wrist. Jenna looked at it with wide eyes, grabbing to take a better look. "Aren't I clumsy? That was from trying to be adventurous and racing through the woods. Not a good idea if you ask me." I said with a laugh, hiding my sweat and trembling as fatigue.

"Don't worry, I need to hit the gym too." She said, before going to grab her medical kit and sat me down at the kitchen table. She cleaned and wrapped it, laughing with me as we talked about our fatty days of nachos and beer. We even went to the kitchen and showed each other our favorite original combos of food. This took about a good four hours, and was quite entertaining.

"You should try hot sauce on top of vanilla ice cream." I said with a grin, to which Jenna rolled her eyes.

"Been there, done that." She laughed, so I raised a brow in challenge. "Try caramel sauce on nachos with guacamole and sprinkles, then dip it in strawberry ice cream."

"Whhoooaaa, trippy." I teased, and we both laughed. I jolted a bit when my phone vibrated, and pulled it out.

_Where are you?_

I gulped, thinking about not answering for a moment, but then another message came in.

_I won't hurt you, I had a buffet._

To that, I sighed before replying my location to Damon. Jenna noticed my annoyance, and raised a brow as I put the phone down on the counter.

"Boy problems?" She asked, and I shrugged.

"Friend that's a wild boy problems." I corrected and she nodded in understanding.

"I hear ya, so who's the guy?" She asked, and I stole a chip from the bag opened out in front of us.

"Damon, pass the caramel dip?" I asked, and she slid the container towards me with raised brows. Before she could give me her smarty pants comment in reply, the doorbell rang. "I'll get it." I said, before wandering off to answer the door. To my surprise, it was Damon, and he looked much healthier, though his clothes were really dirty.

"Hello." He said, in his traditional sexy greeting. I gave a smile, and turned to say my goodbyes to Jenna. However, when I got in the car, my whole body felt a bit tense. I just kept expecting for him to look over at me, to bite me, and it worried my whole body.

"You need to relax." He said smoothly as he drove down the road. I looked at him, incredulous.

"I'm sorry, when was the last time your friend tried to chase you down and make you lunch? Sorry for being a bit paranoid now. It's kind of one of those experiences that haunt you." I said suddenly, feeling my mouth working faster than I wanted it to. Damon opened his mouth to speak, and maybe it was the nerves, but my own voice beat him to the punch.

"And don't say you can take it away, because I don't want you to." I said, and he looked at me with a raised brow. "I mean, it's a part of you, and if I'm your friend I should be able to accept that, right? That's what friends do, they forgive and they move forward." I just kept on talking, the word vomit not stopping.

"We are friends right? I mean if we aren't then I'm sorry for this whole speech, it's just that I feel a lot closer to you than most people, I mean like you're the coolest dude I've ever met and all, and I think that if it were up to me you'd totally be hanging with me forever and ever. And I want to be friends for a really long time- oh but you probably won't want to hang with someone who's old and grey and pathetic, because I'll eventually be in diapers- hey did you ever see that one commercial about the guy that-" I turned to Damon as we parked the car outside the Boarding House, and he cuffed the back of my head lightly. It was enough to hurt though.

"Ow! That hurt! Why would you do that?" I asked, surprised. Then he grabbed the back of my head and made me look at him in the eye.

"What you did was incredibly stupid today." He said, looking completely serious. I nodded in agreement, it was absolutely crazy, a sane person would've used a dummy or-or not let him out at all. He looked down to my lips and then back to my face again.

"Having said that..." He paused, as though not sure what to say anymore, and I just waited for him to... to move. Suddenly he pulled my face to his, and I felt his lips as he kissed my forehead for a few seconds. When he pulled away, he was looking at me intently.

"Thank you."

Whoa.

Who would've thought a thank you would feel so... so... invigorating? My spine shiver as he brushed his hands through my hair, and I smiled at him.

"Ah, we both know you'd be lost without me." I said, but then looked at the house. "Won't Stefan catch on pretty fast if I'm here?" I asked, but he just shrugged.

"Let him figure it out. He'll probably go through more hoops trying to understand you." He said with a wicked smirk, and I laughed, before hopping out of the car and meeting him at the hood. Without asking, I laced my fingers into his, beaming with joy as I drug him inside.

"So mister, show me the place! I've only seen very little of it." I teased, referring to earlier's events. He led me inside, and I actually took the time to really look at the house.

"This place is pretty trippy if you ask me." I said, letting go of his hand to walk in and look around. He smirked, before grabbing my hand again and twirling me around. "Stefan's not home?" I added, hearing nothing at all in the house except the crackling of the fire.

"Please my fair maiden, don't hold back." He teased as we danced. He let go and I spun one more circle before falling onto the couch. I noticed a stack of books, one was open and it looked like there was hand writing inside. Picking it up, I read a line or two before realizing it was a journal.

"That would be Stefan's work." Damon said, and I quirked a brow at him. "He likes to express himself, he seems to think he's the protege to Emerson." He said dramatically, but when I thought of the journal, I thought of Madison Corral too.

"Damon," I began, before he collapsed on the other couch. "Did you know Madison Corral?" I asked, to which he sighed. He seemed lost in thought for a moment, so I got up and grabbed him a drink- and one for myself.

"She came to live with my father and Stefan. She was orphaned just days before we met her, lying there half dead in the woods." He said, and I listened intently as I handed him his drink.

"She was attacked by something?" I asked, curious. Damon shook his head, but then also shrugged.

"Could be, though she said she never remembered her attacker." He said, to which I gave him a worried expression.

"So, was she compelled?" I asked, to which he smirked.

"Definitely not." He said, to which I motioned for him to continue as he rolled his eyes. "She knew about vampires, and she couldn't be compelled by Katherine, or any of the vampires in Mystic Falls during that time."

"Why, did she know of vervain?" I asked, leaning forward to rest my elbows on my knees, my drink held by the tips of my fingers.

"I don't know, I just know that she was probably the strangest person I had ever met." He said, taking a huge chug of his drink. I frowned, curious to know more.

"Strange how?" I asked, to which he explained.

"Madison was, well she wasn't like most women those days. She was strong for her size too, and wasn't afraid of the vampires, especially not Katherine. She showed a distinct hatred for her, though I never knew why." He said.

"Katherine, the woman you're looking for under the church?" I asked, to which he hesitated mid sip and looked at me with a surprised expression. I smiled and shrugged.

"It doesn't take a genius to put two and two together Damon. Is there some sort of spell put on the church?" I asked, and rolled my eyes when he glared at me more. "C'mon, I was adopted by a witch, of course I know about protective spells." I teased, to which he shrugged and gave a nod as though it made sense.

"So you want Katherine, that's why you came back?" I asked, to which he just nodded. "What's she like?" I asked, curious as to what had Damon so smitten. He smirked, thinking about it deeply.

"Katherine was by no accounts kind. She liked to play, and didn't ever share. She was wicked and selfish, but she had this aura that just drew you in, and made you want to know her." He said, as though recounting her in front of his very own eyes. A gleam shone through that I'd never seen before, and it made me smile.

"You loved her." I said, not asked, said. He looked at me, then away, but never denied it. "So Madison and Katherine hated each other? How did they even cross paths?" I asked, to which Damon looked to the ceiling, and then at me.

"It was because of Stefan and I." He said, and I quirked another brow. "Madison appeared about a month before Katherine. She got to know us, and she was a very strong woman. I had to admit, her adamant beliefs struck me, she too was a very headstrong and unkind woman to those she did not like. Over time Stefan and I learned that she could be kind, and she was actually a very warm person. After a while though, Katherine came, and she didn't like how Madison was fawning over us, so Katherine... took care of her." He ended casually, to which my eyes widened.

"That's it? Katherine killed Madison and everything's fine and dandy?" I asked, shocked at the ending. Damon just shrugged, before getting up to grab more alcohol.

"Wait, wait a minute," I said, getting up to follow him. "So Madison died, did you or Stefan even give a damn? She was your friend, right?" I asked, worried to hear the answer. If he didn't care when he was human, would Damon care if I died while he was a vampire? That thought worried me a bit.

He turned back to me, and looked at me intently.

"We were compelled to forget about her, and by the time we were turned, it didn't matter anymore. Katherine was gone, and Madison had been dead for a while." He said flatly, but I shook my head.

"So that's it, you weren't upset by her death?" I asked, and that seemed to piss Damon off. He slammed his glass down and glared at me.

"What do you want to hear Lani? That I cared? That I felt upset when she died? That I felt disgusting for ever forgetting her? She's _dead_ and nothing and no one is going to be able to change that." He said sharply, making me gulp. He felt guilty, he felt upset that he forgot about his friend. Without thinking, I wrapped my arms around him and shook my head again.

"If she was Corral, I'm sure she'd forgive you. She'd definitely want Katherine dead though. We Corrals don't take kindly to our friends being stolen." I said, before backing away and unwrapping myself. Damon looked to the ground for a moment, so I gestured to behind me.

"I'm going to make some food, want something?" I asked, to which he smirked.

"Only if you can fit on a silver platter." He teased, but I just rolled my eyes and walked out. Jeeze that guy, does 180's without a moment of notice! Damon followed in after a few minutes, and I was already cutting things up.

"Out of curiosity, has there been a day you haven't loved your darling Katherine?" I asked, to which he rolled his eyes.

"Oh enough already!"

"What? I love this whole 'star crossed lovers' thing. It's cute." I said, grinning as I watched him come closer to me. He grabbed a knife and began to chop a few of the ingredients I planned to put in my stir fry.

"Well I'm tired of it, by the way, once Stefan sees you here, I'd be careful." He added, and I looked up to him momentarily. "There is not a doubt in my mind he'd do anything to protect Elena, so don't take those pretty little rings off worth anything, hmm?" He said, and I nodded before continuing my chopping.

Great, homicidal friend to my left, over protective vampire to my right? What else? A mummy?

"Aw that's cute, you're worried about me?" I teased, and he gave me this completely sarcastic lovey dovey crap look.

"I just- couldn't find the right time to tell you and- you're just so perfect I can't look away!" He said in this movie drama voice, looking so serious about his confession. I laughed, before shrugging.

"I know, people fall in love with me at just one glance." I said, before sneaking a look up to him as he finished chopping the red peppers. "But seriously, loving someone for over a century? That's amazing Damon, I hope I can find somebody to love me that strongly too." I said with a grin.

He snuck a glance at me, before picking up a piece of pepper and eating it.

"Enough about me, what about you?"

"Me?"

"Yeah what are your dark and mysterious boyfriends like?" He asked, leaning down to look me in the eye. I laughed before I stopped chopping and leaned against the counter too.

"Me? I've never been in love, and I don't think I ever should be. I'm a chicken, and I have a melodramatic witch as my guardian. The closest to a relationship I got was with my long term best friend who suddenly went AWOL. Not to mention she never gave me a chance to try a guy out for myself." I muttered.

"Try out? Didn't know it was a sport." He teased, and I snorted before I began to chop the remaining items.

"Yeah well, it should've been. Bella would spend an entire day reading into their minds, and she'd pull up every reason for me not to date them. The ones she approved of had that Romantic Stare, and brooding foreheads. In other words they were a lot like Stefan, only half as cute and a lot more boring." I said with a sigh.

"So basically this Bella tied you down to whatever guy she thought you wouldn't go running off with?" Damon asked with and smirked as he crossed his arms.

"Basically. I mean I understood why, but once I moved in with Maria, I started to play the field again, only most of the guys I liked were either too dead for me or just plain boring." I said, putting the knife down to throw everything into a frying pan.

"So you chose to run away with a vampire- yup, definitely not boring, buuut lively wouldn't exactly cut it right now." He said with a smirk. I looked to him and rolled my eyes.

"For a dead person, you're more alive than half the living in this town." I said, smiling at him. When he went to open his mouth again though, the comment wasn't directed at me.

"Hello Stefan."

I looked to the entrance to the kitchen to see Stefan standing there, looking between the tow of us with wide eyes. Then those eyes narrowed in on Damon, and he full on glared. My eyes wandered to the stake in his hands, and I slowly grasped the frying pan, watching him carefully.

"I told you to stay away from her." Stefan said slowly, almost growling.

"Well she never stayed away from me either." Damon said as though he were innocent, I just rolled my eyes, shaking the pan to prevent my food from burning.

"Damon, I'm warning you-"

"Or what? You're going stake me?" He countered, to which Stefan stayed quiet. "Contrary to common belief Stefan, I'm a lot more convincing than you'd think. Miss Corral here was just about to feed me dinner." He said in a tone that suggested something other than the stir fry sloshing in the pan. I didn't tense though, and instead I screeched when one of the windows broke.

A man came flying at me, but Damon pulled me away and punched him before he could bite me. Another flew at Stefan from down the hall, and lastly one came after me, aiming right for me. At the last second though, he veered and turned to Damon. In slow motion, I watched as he grabbed the back of Damon's shoulders, before shoving a hand through his back.

He was grasping his heart.

"Damon!"

* * *

**Wow, you guys must really love me! I'm loving these reviews! So I got roped into babysitting, and so I am writing this so late when I gotta get up in six hours. You guys better love me, especially since this chapter's 2,000 words longer than normal!  
**

**Originally this was supposed to be a hot scene, but I don't think Dash is ready for that step. I actually rewrote the car and biting scene twice, five times in my head actually. I just think that people Damon really likes- he won't just jump into bed with. When he loves something, he does it with his all, and I think if he's starting to like Ashlan, he'll actually start being delicate with her, he'll start to second guess his steps around her.  
**

**So you guys were saying you liked the dynamics of their relationship, well I have to say, sorry for you guys. Thing's don't always stay the same ;P As for hot scenes though, I can guarantee there will be many, many more to come darlings. By the way, if you guys have any suggestions, please let me know, I am more than always open to a bit of advice.  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: Follow episodes or veer off?  
**


	14. I Am What I Make Myself To Be

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'Don't Stop' -InnerPartySystem_

_**Chapter** 13  
_

_"I Am What I Make Myself To Be"_

* * *

_I've never been the type to plant myself in one place. _

_I mean, I stayed in the same town for five years, but in all reality, I never made anything permanent. Everything was always only temporary. So it didn't overly bother me when I realized Damon wasn't going to be sticking around, or Stefan even, they couldn't even if they wanted to. _

_I knew Damon was going to leave once he got Katherine out, and Stefan would leave once he turned Elena or they would just move on and- ah Hell, I hate that feeling. The feeling of change, because I know no matter how many times I pray, this little picture won't last. It'll get mauled by the bigger picture until it doesn't exist anymore. _

_So each and everyday that I have- with Elena, Caroline, Bonnie, Stefan, Damon, Jenna...- I am going to enjoy. Even when we argue, I'll try to speed up the fight and get back to the joy, because I know, someday when I blink, everything will be different. _

_Even Damon will change right before my eyes._

_It only takes a second for it to happen. _

_The same amount of time it takes for us to die._

_I had never thought of myself changing though. Had I changed? Was changing a bad thing, or a necessity of life? It was hard to tell anymore, my whole existence had become one big blur. What if I was the one who was changing though, and everything was staying the same? Would it still be different?_

_Would it be better? _

_Only one way to find out._

* * *

BAM!

In the time Damon took to throw the first vampire off him, spin around, and glare, I had used my ring to cause the second vampire to have an aneurism. He dropped like a fly, and Damon grabbed at his chest and ripped his heart out. I turned to see Stefan had shoved his vampire off him, but before I could say anything, the vampire Damon had thrown came up behind me.

A cry broke from my throat as he bit, and I knew something was torn pretty badly by the sheer intensity of the pain.

"You taste soooo good." He growled, but a second later he collapsed, and I fell to the ground. Somebody caught me though, and something was being shoved down my throat. This liquid fire I had never tasted in my life. It was like whiskey with a cup of sugar and peppers, this strange combination- I just knew I couldn't get enough.

"That's a girl. Shhhh." Damon cooed, and I could feel myself grasping at the container to the substance going down my throat. It was skin- Damon? I wanted to ask what he was giving me, but I couldn't as I continued to drink. Eventually the skin was pulled away, and I sighed before leaning back. A hand clutched my cheek, shaking it slightly, making my brow furrow.

"Lani, can you look at me?" Damon said, and I opened my eyes to see him staring at me with a furrowed brow. I sat up on my own, rubbing at my neck- wait didn't I have a wound? I looked at my hand that came off clean, before feeling around a bit more. Strange, what did he give me?

"Where's the last one?" I muttered, but Damon shook his head.

"Got away." He muttered, though I could tell he was upset. Stefan came up to us, looking down at me with a confused look. I looked up to him as Damon helped me to my feet.

"You saved her." Stefan said, but he never took his eyes off me.

"Contrary to common belief Stefan, I can spare lives." Damon said in this sharp voice, but I just rolled my eyes.

"So that's what they call it nowadays." I muttered, walking over to the dead vampire that had bit me. The stake Stefan had been holding in his back. I frowned, spitting on his corpse. "So what do we do with these?" I asked, looking over to the brothers who were currently glaring at each other.

"Damon, Stefan." I said sharply. They both looked to me, clearly having had some internal battle with each other prior. My mind wandered around what they were arguing about, but I shrugged it off and gesture to the bodies. Damon stepped forward and walked to the guys shoulders while I went to his legs. We picked him up and walked over to the fire. I raised a brow, but Damon didn't say anything until we swung the body into the fire.

"Vampires are impervious, no matter how many times we die we just come back. There are exceptions though- Fire, heart extraction, stake to the heart, sunlight- you get the idea." He said, waving it off. Stefan dragged the second vampire over to the fire, and Damon helped him toss it in. I watched, slightly amazed as the body burned to ash faster than a human body would. My brow furrowed, remembering that Katherine was supposed to die in a fire, it would make sense that vampires weren't invincible.

"What now?" Stefan asked, looking to Damon, who just raised a brow at Stefan. "What are you going to do with her?" He demanded, and Damon actually looked a little annoyed at that.

"C'mon Stefan, lighten up."

"Damon-"

"What are you guys talking about?" I asked, confused about what was going on, and why Stefan was so- ah, he probably thought that I was just under compulsion. He looked to me, and clearly looked upset.

"I can do, whatever I want. Lani here can do, whatever she wants. And if we want to do things together, well then hey, double bonus!" Damon said in such a sarcastic voice.

"Wow, nice to know I'm worth something." I muttered, raising a brow at Damon. It seemed Stefan put two and two together rather quickly, his eyes widened and he looked rather shocked.

"You knew."

"Well yeah, I mean it doesn't take a genius to figure out what's going on." I said rolling my eyes. "Especially not with Damon so kindly bringing me here." I muttered, walking back to my possibly burnt stir fry.

"What's she talking about Damon?" Stefan asked, glaring at his brother as I tried to salvage my food. Most of it was safe- yay!

"Oh her? I just picked her up on the way home. She's got quite a bit of spunk, oh and she agrees- the brooding forehead- you could be a posture child for Prozac." Damon said, walking up the stairs with Stefan following.

"Damon." He began, but his tone was warning, making me raise a brow in curiosity. I didn't say anything about it though, and instead poured my food into a bowl and decided to save it for another day. I wasn't hungry anymore, whatever Damon gave me, it had completely filled my stomach. I instead went to find my coat and decided to head home.

"Damon you can't do that, she has a right to do as she pleases!" I heard Stefan shout as I got closer to the stairwell. I frowned, and found that curiosity was just itching inside of me. What was Stefan so hyped about? Did he eat Bambi and decide he was king almighty now?

"She's fine! Just leave her be."

"You're going to hurt her."

"We're having fun! Why not enjoy it while it lasts?" Damon teased, and I knew he was getting a kick out of whatever they were arguing about. Stefan said something else, but it was so low I could hear him. I found myself actually leaning my ear as high as I could from the bottom step, curiosity may have killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back.

"You know what? I just got a wonderful idea." I nearly jumped when he was suddenly beside me, a smile on Damon's face. "Lani, would you like to live in the boarding house with me... and Stefan?" He added as though it weren't worth saying. Stefan came down just as I began to grin.

"I would love to, Mister Salvatore." I said, giving my best attempt at a curtsey. He smirked, looking over his shoulder at Stefan.

"See? Told you she'd accept my invitation." Damon teased, but I just rolled my eyes and reached into his pocket for his keys. He looked at me, eyes following my hands as I dangled the car keys in front of him.

"So, Mister Salvatore, would you be so kind as to drive me to the hotel?" I asked smoothly, attempting to pretend an English accent. Damon smirked, taking one of my hands into his.

"I would be my pleasure, Miss Ashlan." He said in this gentlemanly voice, before kissing it. His eyes never left mine, and I found that I was easily falling for such a sarcastic charm. "Come, your chariot awaits." He teased, before letting go of my hand to offer me his arm. I laughed, but stood as upright as I could while walking out the door with him.

This could be fun.

* * *

That night, I slept in an unfamiliar room, but what bothered me was not the fact that two vampires were separated by just a wall from me, but rather what was replaying over and over inside of my head.

There was this strange hissing noise, and it kept on getting louder and louder. It started as nothing, as I stared at the ceiling in thought. Then it suddenly got louder, as though it were getting closer and closer to me. I jolted when I heard a low growl, and sat up suddenly. At the end of my bed was a massive feline, its dark auburn- almost black- fur was sleek and shiny, a dorsal stripe going down it's back. It's teeth were glinted with saliva that was dripping off of it, and even in the dark I could see it's eyes.

Those eyes, cat like in nature, all was black except from the iris, which was a pure white that shone in the dark. Those glowering eyes made my heart pump faster, but I refused to move. It crawled onto the bed, taking slow, languid steps towards me. It's tongue hung out of it's mouth, and as it came forward, it sniffed me.

My whole body was shaking as I stared directly at those monstrous teeth. This wasn't a normal sized creature, it was the size of a pony! Those teeth had to be the size of my own fingers! I refused to move as it growled lowly, and even when it took a lower stance and _roared_. My ears popped at the deafening sound, so loud and deep, but it was only when it turned and looked away that I moved.

I ran.

Taking off out of the bed and down the hall. It leaped at me, slamming into the walls as it chased. I screamed when I felt it's claws tears the back of my shirt, but I didn't stop running. I broke out of the house and ran through the forest, rocks and other debris cutting the bottoms of my feet, but I just kept running.

"Damon! Stefan! Help me!" I tried to scream, but my voice was lost to me. My heart was pounding in my chest as I ran, everything hurting, but I didn't stop, I just kept running.

Then my own legs were stuck to the forest floor, my whole body coming to stand still against my will. I panicked, trying to move, looking around frantically for the creature-

It wasn't there though.

...

Where did it go? Was it waiting for me to drop my guard? What happened?

Then I heard it, this never ending barrage of whispers, cries of pain. Voices in general. It was so loud yet quiet at the same time, wails blending in perfectly with soft mutters, I couldn't make any words out though. It started to hurt then, and it felt like my whole body was bleeding, my neck and hips, my thighs and wrist, I looked down at my lavender night gown to see crimson liquid spilling onto it. My hands going to my neck and pulling back- same thing.

I was bleeding.

Then the scariest part happened. Hands shot from the ground, and I didn't have time to say or scream before the ground gave way, and I was being held up my dozens of arms grasping my legs. Bodies were pulling themselves up, opening their mouths to taste my blood dripping from my body.

"This is just a dream- just a dream!" I insisted. There was no way this was real- unless...

"Bella, this isn't funny!" I whined, and suddenly I was dropped, falling through a black abyss. My back hit the same chair I was in when we last had our talk, and there she was, looking as proud as before.

"Well it was for me." She purred, and I frowned before crossing my arms and leaning back to rest in my chair.

"What was that about? A happy Halloween present?" I sneered, to which she shrugged.

"Actually yes, I figured I should be the one scaring you the worst, and from there everything can only get better." She said it like it was so obvious, but I just frowned.

"You wouldn't waste your time doing such a spell if it wasn't important..." I said, raising a brow. She nodded confidently, before looking me dead in the eye.

"Something wicked it coming Ashi, I can feel it in my bones."

"What's coming Bella?" I asked, leaning towards her, but she shook her head.

"I haven't a clue, but I want you to be extra careful Ashi, Wicked and Cruel tend you find you quite easily." She said, and I gulped, thinking back to Maria.

"What aren't you telling me, my dear?" Bella asked, but it was more of a demanding tone she used.

"When I found Maria, 'You Are Next' was written on the walls. What does that mean? Was it some joke, or a serial killer or-or a supernatural being or- or what?" I asked. "Bella, I'm scared for my friends, if Maria was targeted, was I the cause? What if they target-"

"Ashi," Bella began, placing a hand over my own. "Calm down, I know this is hard, but please, trust me when I say pushing friends away is the last thing you want to do. Quite the contrary, I think you should hold them closer." She said with a wink, and I nodded.

"Now," She said with a smirk. "Wake up!"

* * *

"Ash!"

I jolted up, looking around me. My eyes locked onto Stefan who was above me, and I frowned.

"Stefan, maybe I should reiterate what friends means." I muttered, noticing he was straddling my waist. The trees swayed a bit with the on coming moonlight.

Wait, canopies?

"Where am I?" I asked, looking around, confused.

"You must have been sleep walking, I found you lying here when I came to hunt, but when I touched you you started to scream." He said, which made sense why he was pinning me down.

"Ah, well that has passed, so if you would be so kind..." I said, and he got off me and offered a hand. I took it and he pulled me to my feet. Looking around, I noticed Stefan walking to touch the rocks.

"This was Fells Church." He said, running his fingers over the stone. It seemed to click in my mind then.

"Where Katherine was burned." I said in realization. Stefan nodded, looking around. "You know, I've heard a little bit about Katherine from Damon, but from what I heard, I couldn't see her as being someone Damon could love. That anyone could love. She sounded selfish and rude, and unless she looked like a Goddess I could imagine her getting very far in life." I said, not quite believing the bitter tone I was using.

"Katherine was cruel and selfish, yes, but she had this way about her. She was one of the most beautiful women I had ever met, and she had her way of making you agree with everything she said." He said this while sitting against the rock, looking at me.

"So who loved her first?" I asked, curious behind the back story. Stefan smiled bitterly at that.

"Turns out, both of us." He said, and I looked at him with wide eyes. "We learned later on that Katherine was a vampire, and she compelled us to do as she wished, which meant playing with both of us."

"So Katherine purposefully went between you and Damon." I said, nodding my head as I sat down on a rock near by him.

"Not just Damon and I, Katherine came between us and Madison as well." He said, looking down at me with a smile. I curved a brow, curious behind his logic.

"Madison?" I asked, but as he opened his mouth to reply, a loud sound rang through the air.

**_BANG_**

I gaped as blood rushed off of Stefan's shirt, and he fell to the ground.

_**BANG**_

A scream tore past my lips as I clutched my hip, and I too doubled over onto the ground. My breaths started to get my frantic, and I reached in to grab at the bullet. It had to come out, if it didn't my blood wouldn't clot, right? I think that's logical, so I reached into the small hole and pulled it out, gritting my teeth and cursing as I did so. I rolled over to look at Stefan, but my breath caught in my throat when I saw another person standing there, and the end of a gun barrel.

Logan Fell looked down at me with a smirk.

"Night night Angel." He taunted before I heard the click as he pulled back on the trigger.

**_BANG!_**

* * *

**Okay, so I'm putting this chapter out, but then I'm going to try and get one more chapter, and then I have some sad news.  
**

**Over the weekend I'm going to be out of town and away from my computer until probably sunday or monday night! Sad face? I have one too. This story has gotten to be so much fun to write!  
**

**So I really am a bit bored with this chapter, a lot of questions for this one you guys might have lol. SO I figured I may just bitcher the original plot line, keep the same basic story but alter it the way I want.  
**

**Yay! Anti Delena fans! I seriously don't think they have chemistry, and I think Damon deserves an amazing girlfriend... now if the writers would stop killing them off he might have a chance at finding 'the one'.  
**

**Also, sorry for spelling mistakes, I'm fucking freezing right now and sometimes my hands won't co-operate with me...  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: Which un answered question is bugging you the most right now about the story? What new plot twist do you find interesting?  
**


	15. Not What I Expected

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'All I Need' -Within Temptation  
_

_**Chapter** 14  
_

_"Not What I Expected"_

* * *

I awoke to soft fingers stroking my face.

A sigh threatened to break past my lips, to ruin the moment, but I sucked it back in as quietly as I could. His fingers were cold, or was I just warm? Most people felt cold compared to me, except Damon, I swear that hot blood of his made him a few degrees warmer than most. Much like myself I suppose. Though right now he felt sort of cold.

"I know your awake." He said softly, making me lose my concentration and let that sigh break past my lips. My eyes fluttered open, and I saw his own eyes roaming over my face. I softly smiled, my hand reaching up to touch him. His hand rested on my neck, his eyes focusing on mine. I quirked my head a little bit, my brow furrowing. Wasn't I in the forest talking to Stefan? What happened, I can't-

Oh my God.

I shot up, my eyes wide as I touched my forehead- clean- then I reached for my leg- clean. My breath started to get faster, and I began to panic.

"Lani." Damon said, his arms closing in on me, hugging me to his chest. "Shhh, you're fine. I got there just in time." He said, running a hand through my long hair.

"What happened?" I asked, looking up to him, confused.

"Logan Fell shot you and Stefan, remember?" He asked, to which I nodded. "He was going to kill you, so I killed him first. Lucky me the second shot hit your shoulder, and nothing vital." He said, looking down to my left shoulder, and then back up into my eyes.

Did Damon just say he saved me? Again?

"What did you give me that healed me so-so quickly?" I asked, touching my shoulder- it felt perfectly fine.

"My blood." He said, and my eyes widened slightly. "Vampire blood has intense healing properties for humans." He said, and I couldn't help the smile that broke out onto my face. He looked at me funny, but I just continued to smile.

"Thank you Damon." I said, honestly thankful. He had this intense look on his face then, his hand going to my face against to cup my cheek. My pulse was beating beneath his fingers, but he wasn't looking at it, he was looking at me, at my eyes, and he seemed so lost in thought that I was scared to speak again. I opened my mouth suddenly, but Damon spoke first.

"Don't ever do that again." He said darkly, my brow furrowing. He didn't keep talking though, and instead went to roll over and lay on his back. I stared down at him, then around the room. It wasn't mine- it was Damon's. Large and open, I kind of liked the style. Looking at the clock on the bedside table, I realized it was time to go to work, so I got up and began to walk out of the room.

I jumped when Damon was suddenly in front of me, glaring.

"What?" I asked, frowning.

"Where do you think you're going?" He challenged, and I crossed my arms.

"I have work Damon, you know, the thing you brought me here for?" I said, but when I tried to walk past him he refused to budge. "Damon!" I complained, but he seemed really upset.

"I don't know if I should let you. There's still a chance you might do something stupid between now and the school. Why were you even out there that late anyway?" He asked, looking really frustrated. It actually caught me off guard- I hadn't been on the receiving end of those looks that often, I wasn't immune.

"I-I was talking to Stefan, and I had a dream. Bella sent me to Fells Church and- look Damon I'm sorry if I scared you, but I'm going to be fine." I insisted, watching a muscle jump in his jaw. He seemed uncertain, so I even smiled and reached to touch his face. His eyes went to my hand, then to me, then back to my hand as I put it down, still smiling.

"I'm fine, you saved me. Why get upset now?" I asked, looking up to him as I watched him carefully.

"Lani, I want you to be very careful." Damon said, his hands bracing my shoulders. "You have vampire blood in your system, if you die with this in your veins, you'll be in transition. You'll become a vampire Lani."

I narrowed my eyes at him for a moment, trying to decipher his words.

"So you'd rather I die?" I asked, though I wasn't looking for an answer. He hesitated for a second, and in that second I realized what he meant. "No, you just don't want me a vampire, right? You would rather I fade away than-than become like you?"

"Would you rather become a vampire?" He challenged, but I shrugged.

"I'd rather that than disappear."

That seemed to catch him off guard, and instead of saying anything, he moved away and went down the hall. He went so quietly, I almost thought he was floating as he disappeared from sight. I watched the hall for a moment, before frowning and going to my room to get dressed.

It was then that I realized I was just in my underwear.

Damon you...!

Easy Ashlan, keep your cool...!

Okay, I can do this. I can, really.

Pulling on some jeans and a long sleeve shirt, I walked downstairs to find Elena, Damon, and Stefan all standing around in the parlor. Elena and Stefan both looked to me when I came down the steps, I myself raising a brow.

"What's going on?" I asked, looking at the three figures- especially Damon glaring daggers at Stefan. Elena walked forward, almost as if seeing a foreign creatures as she furrowed her eyebrows at me.

"How does someone like you know someone like Damon?" She asked, to which I snorted. If only she knew.

"It's a bit complicated, but what you need to know is we're friends." I said with a smile, and she nodded like she didn't quite understand.

"Is it that hard to believe I have friends?" Damon said with an irritated voice. I raised a brow, making him roll his eyes. "Okay maybe for you, Miss Anti-Social, but come on."

"Damon, we need to talk." Stefan said, to which Damon rolled his eyes and stormed out the door, Stefan trailing behind him.

"Is he really always this 'fun' to be around?" Elena asked, to which I shrugged.

"Give or take a few mood swings and we're golden." I muttered, to which Elena laughed a bit. It died down quickly though, and when I looked at her, she looked really confused.

"How do you take Damon's..."She trailed off, and I just raised a brow. That sentence could be finished with half of my vocabulary... maybe all of it.

"His what?"

"You know..." She said, ducking her head closer to me. "Being a vampire." She whispered, as though it were a massive secret. I laughed, before turning to sit on one of the couches.

"Oh trust me, I had a solid hour of dry heaving and panic attacks at first." I said calmly, to which she nodded, encouraging me to continue. "But honestly, I think if it was anybody else who discovered Damon's secret, they'd be dead. Either terrifying themselves or Damon getting rid of them. Be happy you found the nice brother- brooding forehead included." I said, but Elena just shook her head.

"And you like that?" She asked, but I rolled my eyes.

"It's complicated. Elena trust me, I've been around so many 'nice' people that turned out to be assholes. The way I see it, I've seen the worst in Damon, my opinions can only go up from here."

"But why put yourself at risk? What if- what if he tries to kill you and-"

"Elena, Damon would never do that. Contrary to common belief, you can trust Damon. I did, and he saved my life twice, sometimes you just have to trust somebody, even if you're not sure."

"Trust isn't something you can hand out, it has to be given first." She insisted, but I shook my head.

"But Elena, if you wait for somebody to give it to you, nobody will." I pointed out, making her bite her lip. "Sometimes, you just need to smile and nod, sometimes you just need to cry it out. Sometimes, you just need to let it all go and just watch it blow up in somebody else's face. Point is, shit happens, get over it. You either trust, or you don't, just don't regret your decision once it's made." I said, Elena sitting down on the couch across from me and seemingly really thinking about it.

"So," I began, leaning back and kicking my feet up on the coffee table. "You and Stefan." I said with a smirk.

"Me and Stefan." She muttered, making me chuckle.

"Ah, you're young, trust me, the dramas of today will be dimmer tomorrow." I muttered, letting my head fall back onto the couch to look to the ceiling.

"So are you and Damon together?" She asked, and I looked at her with a raised brow. "I mean, you get along pretty well." She said a bit quieter, but I just shook my head.

"Nah, Damon and I, we're cool and all, but we're just friends."

"Really? It doesn't look like that." She insisted, but I just laughed.

"Maybe one day," I said, shrugging the thought off. "But right now I think we're both to fucked up to make something work." I said with a shrug, then looked at the time. "Drive to school together?" I asked, noticing the brother's still weren't back. Elena nodded, before we both made our way to the door.

* * *

"So... You must be Ric." I said, feeling a bit awkward.

"Yup, I'm the new history teacher." He said, shaking my hand. Dammit, a hand shaker huh? Greeeaaat. Jenna, what did you rope me into? I gave the girl a glance, raising a brow in confusion, before she gave me a pleading look. We were all sitting at a table at The Grill, but I wanted to be at the bar doing shots right now instead. This was murderous.

I hated history, there was nothing interesting about it. I mean some things were pretty cool and all, but with history there was no creativity- everything already happened! I hated it so much. So talking about what he teaches went down the drain quickly, luckily Jenna seemed to catch that problem and opened a conversation.

"So we're all back to Mystic Falls, for whatever reason. Care to enlighten why you're here?" She asked, opening it to both of us.

"I decided to come here to just... get away from everything. Start a new life." Alaric said, making me chuckle slightly.

"As a history teacher?" I teased, making him look at me with a raised brow.

"What about you? Did you really want to come hear just because your friends asked you to be a teacher?" He countered, making me quirk a brow and look to Jenna, who took a defensive stance.

"Hey I was just trying to make you sound appealing." She insisted, making me roll my eyes.

"Actually," I said, staring into my glass of water. "She went missing, I think she's dead. It was her dream to visit this place. Mystic Falls- it was the place she wanted to go to, so I came. I figured, it was the least I could do for her." I said, gulping a bit when I looked up at the two across the table from me. Ric frowned a bit, looking sympathetic, Jenna looking about the same.

"I came here to get away," Ric said, catching my attention. "From the memories. My wife was murdered, and I just want to find out who did it. But I decided getting away from it all was better." Ric said, and I had to fight to keep the truth down- that our minds were much the same, though I was still curious about the details to his wife's death.

"Well lookey here," I said with a wry smirk. "Looks like we're all a bunch of damaged goods." I muttered, Jenna and Ric raising their glasses then, we gave a toast, then downed our drinks.

We talked about a few things after that, about how Jeremy seemed to be slowly coming around, about how to tie cherries twice- I had to show Jenna my trick, and from there I realized the two were talking more to each other than me. I figured it was my cue to leave, so I said my goodbyes and went off on a walk.

That was when it happened.

Those fragile whispers, they were reaching my ears.

A shiver rolled down my spine, I could feel them, they were crying, they wanted freedom. Something was off though, I could feel my whole body shaking as I looked down the path I had walked.

Right to Fells Church.

The whispers were louder now, deafening almost. I tried to plug my ears, but it was no use. It got louder and louder, the begging, the crying, and then-

Nothing.

It all vanished.

I jumped with a small scream when my phone vibrated in my pocket. I looked at it- Damon? I pressed talk and held it to my ear.

"Damon, what-"

"How fast can you get to Fells Church?" He asked in a rush, my brow furrowed as I stumbled over words.

"I-I'm there, but wh-"

"Stop Bonnie, she has a crystal of mine. You can't let her destroy it!"

"Damon wait-" He hung up before I could get another word out. I looked to the phone, utterly confused, and then a branch snapped and I looked up at Bonnie. She looked at me strangely though, and I too raised a brow in confusion.

"Bonnie?" I asked, but she took such slow and languid steps, very unlike the Bonnie I knew who liked to rock her hips from side to side. What came from her mouth though, I did not expect.

"Madison?"

* * *

**OMG! I'M BACK GUYS! I was away the whole weekend working, and I had no internet! I actually got really sad :( So yeah, I figured I'd post this, but then I gotta go to school! If you review enough I'll add another chapter tonight though!  
**

**I'm sorry it's so short, but I really had only and hour to write this, so please, be happy I got anything out!  
**

**Hehe, so Emily is going to meet Lani, but what's this? Why call her Madison?  
**

**Review to find out!  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: Okay, I know I just asked, but any new questions buzzing around in your head?  
**


	16. A Whole Different Storyline

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'All I Need' -Within Temptation  
_

_**Chapter** 15  
_

_"A Whole Different Storyline"_

* * *

"What did you just call me?"

"You're Madison. Madison Corral." She stated this time, looking rather insistent. I frowned, cocking my head to the side a bit as my brow furrowed. I pointed to myself, and she just nodded, then I shook my head.

"No, I'm Ashlan Corral." I said slowly, confused as to how she could mistake me for a dead ancestor. "Remember, I'm your friend Bonnie." I said slowly, taking just as slow steps forward. She looked me up and down, and then I realized.

"But you aren't Bonnie, are you?" I asked rhetorically, almost two yards from her now and getting closer. Looking down at her neck, I saw this large amber crystal. Was that what Damon was talking about?

"No, and if you aren't Madison, you must be her descendant." She said slowly, following my gaze to the necklace, making me frown.

"See that's what I don't get. According to Damon and Stefan, Madison was killed by Katherine when she was still young. When did she have time for a baby?" I asked. "And as far as I know, she never had any relatives." I added, the mystery of how we could be related was haunting me, bothering me deeply.

Bonnie smiled this tentative smile, but shook her head very softly.

"Is that what they told you." She said as though thinking out loud. I went to speak, ask her what she meant, but she continued. "My name is Emily, and I can tell you want this crystal by how much you are eying it." She said, and I shrugged.

"A friend of mine wants it, and I'd really love it if you gave it to me." I said, trying to add in a not so fake smile, but she was resilient.

"I'm afraid I cannot do that." She said, making me frown.

"Why not? Damon just wants Katherine out of the tomb. If she's out he'll be happy. Isn't that simple?" I asked, trying not to sound hopeful. Emily started walking again, but I stood in her path. She looked up to me, all serious now.

"It's not just Katherine down there." She said, but when she tried to walk past me I grabbed her arm.

"Emily wait! What do you-" I screeched as I was flung through the air. A sharp pain hit my hip, and I let out a cry as I looked down. Bad move- I could see a branch sticking out of my hip, going right through me. It hurt so much, I started to cry, I started to let out noises too high pitched for even me to hear as I looked to Bonnie. She frowned.

"I'm sorry, but no one can have this crystal." She said, then she walked over to the place I had been standing, right in the ruins of the church. I had to stop her, I had to try at least, so I wrapped my hair through my mouth to make sure I didn't break any teeth before I put my arms behind me and gently hoisted myself off the branch. Luckily I was still standing, if I was above ground it would've been impossible.

Still, the pain was almost unbearable. I pulled myself off a bit too quickly, tearing more flesh, I cried through my hair, gnawing at it to stop myself from grinding my teeth. When I was off of it, I placed a hand over the wound, tears clouding my vision.

It hurt so much...

I spat out my hair, and looked to Bonnie, but it wasn't just her there, Damon and Stefan were shouting, but I couldn't hear them. I could only hear the pounding of my blood beating through my veins.

"Emily!" I shouted, making her turn. I spat up a bit of blood, wincing.

"Ash!" Stefan shouted, trying to hold Damon down. He seemed weakened, Stefan actually being able to hold him back.

"Emily please, at least tell me, is there a way to just get one? If you saved them all, we can kill them. Emily we can get Katherine out and kill the rest." I said, holding my bleeding wound. She looked down to it, the trail of blood falling down my leg now. Then her eyes held back to mine, and a strange smile was on her face.

"Always the protector, you Corrals are all the same."

"Emily-"

"Damon doesn't want them dead, and he'll kill you too." She said, Damon trying to lunge at her, but she turned and held her hand up, making him fly back into the treeline. Before anyone could say anything else, she raised both her arms above her head and looked to the sky. Fire lit the ground, a circle and a star burnt onto the forest floor.

"No... Please." I begged, but she ignored me, taking the pendant off and throwing it into the air. It exploded, raining down on us in tiny dust particles. The fires extinguished, and I hobbled over to Bonnie. She looked at me, seeming confused.

"Ash, why are you-"

"No!" Damon shouted, and before I could even blink he came at Bonnie.

"Damon!" I shouted, grabbing his arm, but instead of just pulling back, he recoiled and clamped his mouth down onto me. My eyes widened, and for a second I felt absolutely nothing. Then the pain started, but it was nothing compared to the feeling running through my veins.

Damon just bit me.

Even as he let go a second later, looking at me with wide eyes filled with shock, I couldn't do anything but fall to my knees, before sitting down with my legs beneath me. I made eye contact with him, I watched him look at me with confusion- sorrow?- whatever look was there. Still, I couldn't get over the fact.

Damon just tried to kill me.

I didn't know why, but I wasn't blaming him- why wasn't I? He tried to fucking kill me! I should be screaming at him! Yet that look in his eye, I knew he regretted it, and suddenly it was like a tidal wave overflowed me, and his slate was clean again. I opened my mouth to tell him, to comfort him- I don't know! What I do know was I never wanted to see such a look on his face.

He ran, right when I went to say something.

"Ash!" Elena's voice reached my ears, Bonnie supporting me as my body became heavy. She laid me down, and next thing I know Stefan is over me. He's turning my head, but the pain is minimal now- am I dying? It felt that way, but when Stefan bit his wrist and shoved it to my mouth, I knew that something was springing to life in me. I latched my hands onto his wrist, drinking the intoxicating liquid. Even as he tried to pull his hand away, I didn't want him to.

Finally, I let go, and suddenly the world was clear and clean to me again. No more hazy dots clouding my vision or throbs in more than just my skull. Looking around, I saw Elena and Bonnie watching me, Bonnie crying a little bit, Elena was quietly explaining something to her.

The pain was gone though, making me feel better.

I sat up, Stefan kneeling next to me, but from the look on his face, he knew that attack was far more than just shock for me.

If only I knew what Damon was feeling.

* * *

"Ash, why don't you and Bonnie spend the night at my place?" Elena offered me from where I sat in the back, but I was barely listening. The fact that Damon had bit me was fresh in my mind. This strange frustration was building inside of me- why did it feel like this was the last chance I'd have to clear things up with him? Why did I feel like going to Elena's was me giving up?

"Ash?" Elena asked again, but I caught sight of the road leading to the boarding house, and suddenly all hell broke loose inside of me.

"Stop the car." I said quietly, but when she didn't, I screamed. "Stop the car Elena!" I shouted, making her slam on the brakes.

"Ash what are you doing?!" Elena asked me. I got out of the car, and began walking in the opposite direction. Shaking my head, I called back over my shoulder.

"I don't even know." I said, my whole body roaring to go this direction. She got out of the car and ran after me.

"Ashlan!" She called, but I ignored her. "Going to him now isn't a good idea! He could hurt you!"

"Good." I muttered, too quiet for her to hear, and then I broke into a run. I really needed to work out more, because by the time I got to the boarding house I was huffing and puffing again. I stormed in, slamming the door back as hard as I could as I walked in. Stefan was in the parlor, and he raised a brow at me, confused to see me. He opened his mouth to speak, but I shook my head.

"Where's Damon?" I asked, making him hesitate.

"Ash I think you should go-"

"Damon!" I called loudly, ignoring Stefan. I marched up the stairs, Stefan called after me but didn't follow. When I walked into Damon's room, I found it empty, but then I heard the shower running and I walked right in. He was showering, but I didn't care, his back was to me and he seemed to be so lost in thought he didn't hear me enter.

"Damon!" I growled, and he spun around to look at me. He had this confused look on again, and he frowned. He shut the shower off, and grabbed a towel to wrap around himself. I waited just long enough for him to secure it, I tried to make contact but he wouldn't look at me. Once he was out, he tried to speak, but all my anger seeped through me then, and I reared back a fist and punched him so hard his head turned sideways.

"You stupid, idiotic, egotistical asshole! You could've killed me tonight! You realize that right? Right? And you almost succeeded!" I screamed, but Damon never moved from his position, never looked back up at me. My mouth kept running then, and before I knew it word vomit had begun.

"You know for what it's worth, I should be pissed at you, scared even. I should be running back to Bella and telling her the big bad vampire does exist, that she was right, you're no good for me." I said sharply, but then I shook my head. "But then it'd be just like everything else. I'd be giving up before it even started. And you know what Damon? All those other times I did give up, because it was easier than getting hurt. It's always easier to just tell yourself that if you stay away from somebody your life is going to be easier."

My breathing was heavy, Damon still didn't dare to move a muscle though as he glared at the ground, that same pained look on his face.

"But I don't want to be a quitter, I never cared before, but..." I grabbed his face gently and held it in both hands, making him look at me.

Don't show me that face again.

"I don't want to give up on you Damon." I said softly. We stayed like that for a moment, and I could tell he felt he was put on the spot, yet he stared at me with such intensity. His hand went to my face, his thumb rubbing over my cheek.

"You are such an idiot." He said, but I shook my head.

"I'm not saying you're off the hook- I'm actually very upset. But you are my friend Damon, and I can see you regret it. And I don't want to see that look on your face. I don't want you to be in pain." I said, my thumbs gliding over his cheek bones. Something seemed to have softened in his gaze, a light frown on his face.

"You're still and idiot."

"Hey," I warned. "You're still stuck with me." I teased. He leaned forward and kissed my forehead then, my hands dropping to his shoulders as he pulled me to him and embraced me.

"I couldn't tell you the last time somebody believed in me like you do," He said softly into my hair. "You have no idea how much I want that to stay. I'm sorry Lani." He said, and I realized that this tender moment was a bad thing. Damon isn't this tender with anything, never this open.

Dread filled my heart, because I realized when the sun came up, he might now be here.

He can't get Katherine out, why stick around.

I laughed.

"I guess you could call it... some strange blood bond. I just... I have this strange trust for you that I can't really explain." I said as we pulled apart, my hands going to his face again as he studied mine.

"Have you ever met somebody, and you feel like you've met them before? Like you've known them your whole life, even when you know it's not possible?" I asked, looking deeply into those bold blue eyes. He hummed a response, before we both let go.

"I'll leave you to get dressed." I said, going to leave the room.

"Lani-" Damon began, making me turn to look at him. He looked like he was itching to say something, but when he opened his mouth he quickly shut it. "Come back in an hour?" He asked instead. I smiled and nodded, before venturing out of the room. I grabbed my journal and pen from my room, went downstairs to make popcorn, then went to go back up. Stefan met me on the stairway, and he had this sad smile on his face.

That cemented it, I knew he too wasn't staying then.

I went back into Damon's room to see him reading _Gone With The Wind_, so I walked over and hopped onto the bed next to him with a grin. He smiled, and I placed the bowl between us. We talked for a bit, about things like literature- he asked for me to give him a copy of my next best seller when I said he gave me inspiration for a character. Then the topic went from there, to life, to school and why it sucked, and then back to literature.

We just talked for hours, and even as he curled up against me, his head resting in my lap as I sat up and wrote in my journal, I remembered every detail about him, from his laugh to his smirk, right down to the pitch of his voice.

I wrote in my journal, before he asked what I wrote. Smiling, I told him he could read it once I died of old age, which ended in us having a wrestling match.

I'd never want him to know though.

_Chances. _

_They come at you when you don't even realize it. _

_Sometimes taking chances is a bad thing- you could get hurt, or worse, you could hurt the people around you. _

_Sometimes though, chances are good. _

_They let you see things you otherwise wouldn't. I took a chance when I forgave Damon. I'm still so pissed off, but I know, at the end of the day, Damon will be there for me. He's got my back, and I've got his. Maybe that was why I felt I should give him another chance, because Damon never meant to hurt me, because I know if the roles were reversed he would forgive me. _

_Maybe I am a fool, for chasing after him, and I know he may be gone when my eyes open again, but I never want to forget, the feeling of his chest rumbling when he laughs against me, his eyes lingering on my skin. I never want to forget that beautiful voice, or the fact that he holds me so tenderly when he's trying to say he's sorry. _

_I doubt that, even when I'm old and grey, I will ever feel the same about someone. It's indescribable, this strange desire inside of me. I feel as though Damon has always been there for me, that he's been there since day one, it was like the moment we met in the bar wasn't just the beginning of our story, it was just the opening to a new chapter. _

_Even when I'm dead, I feel like it won't be the end. I feel as though there's one big key element on why I feel so strongly for Damon. What is it though? What could I have forgotten? _

_Bella would kill me if she knew- running off with her sister's killer is one thing. _

_Falling for him, is a whole different story._

* * *

**OMG! I'm sorry to say I really have to get going! Okay, next chapter is up! Look at me go- hour and a half and I got this? Woot!  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: Okay, would you have forgiven Damon? Do you think Ash should've been more angry? There is a very important reason why she isn't!  
**


	17. Whatever The Risk

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'I Should Go' -Levi Kreis  
_

_**Chapter** 16  
_

_"Whatever The Risk"_

* * *

The morning came too soon.

I refused to open my eyes though, because the memories of last night leaped forward the moment my conscious began to function. Fear that I was all alone crept up my skin, cold against my skin. The sunlight was heavy on my eyes though, making me wince as I turned away. My movement set another in motion it seemed, as someone else moved with me.

Someone else.

I peeked open an eye, smiling happily when I saw him lying there, his head on my stomach. That messy mop of black hair blinding my vision of his peaceful face. I grinned when he turned his head a bit, just enough for me to see his face. He looked so peaceful, so at rest. It was another side I had never seen of him. My fingers found his cheek, and I gently dragged the back of them over his face, memorizing his cool skin, how it felt, everything about him.

His eyes opened, and no matter how many times I had looked into them, they always looked more amazing. He gave me this soft smile, his hand rubbing over my bare stomach- he had pulled my shirt up during the night up to my chest it seemed- and I sighed in approval.

This was something I wouldn't mind waking up to.

"Morning." I breathed softly, smiling at him. He smiled at me still, this strange look in his eyes, but then it was like something had slapped him in the face, and his smile swiped off his face.

"Ashlan." He said as though it were dawning on him. My smile dropped, and I swallowed heavy. He never called me by my full name, not unless it was very serious.

"Y-Yeah?" I asked, and he surprised me by sitting up so quickly, looking around, looking confused- then it seemed to dawn on him, and he rushed to the bathroom. I heard the door clicked, utterly confused. What the hell just happened? Somebody want to reference me in?

Yeah, I was thinking thoughts that were better left alone.

Stupid Ashlan.

I got up and went back to my room, threw on some clothes, and got ready for the day. When I went downstairs, Stefan was there making breakfast.

"Hey." I said softly, making him look up to me.

"Good morning." He said, but I just snorted, making him give me a funny look. I grabbed a cup of coffee and sat down on a bar stool.

"You know it's not." I said, making him frown in confusion. "Come on, sentimental Damon? That look you gave me last night? You really think I'm that stupid?" I asked sharply, narrowing my eyes at him before sliding off the stool and walking back upstairs with my coffee in hand. I leaned against the doorway as Damon walked around the room- getting ready for the day.

"So what are you doing today?" I asked, but he didn't look at me. He just kept futzing around in his room, so I took a sip of my coffee and raised a brow.

"I'm going to go and visit some friends down in Sin City." He said it like he were talking about the weather.

"What? What about- about that vampire? He's still lurking around." I insisted, but he shook his head.

"I killed him a while ago."

"Oh."

Biting my lip, I decided whether to ask- now or never, right?

"Should I pack?"

It was silent for a moment, Damon standing still with his back to me. He let out a huge sigh, looking to the ceiling- then he turned and looked at me. He had this strange look on, a stony expression normally directed at others. He was a whole different person suddenly, and I wasn't sure what I had done so wrong.

"No," He said, shaking his head. "Where I'm going Lani, you won't be happy."

I'll be with you- I wanted to say it, but my pride wouldn't let me. Instead, I nodded, quietly accepting it, though at the same time not.

Don't be a stranger to me.

Please.

"Okay," I said, looking up at him. "Will you visit?" I asked, though I already knew the answer. He shrugged, still not moving.

"In a couple months." He said, and I felt a chill run through me.

He wasn't planning on it.

"How about each birthday?" I asked, struggling to keep my hopefulness down. He smiled at that, seemingly genuine, I almost fell for it.

"Come on Lani, you're going to have other people you'll want to spend your birthdays with, and you want me to crash the party?" He teased, but my face stayed stony.

"Yes." I said firmly, making his smile drop for a second, but it was replaced with a very insincere one. There was nobody else I could think of, wanting to spend a day with. I wanted to spend it with him, I wanted to spend each and every birthday with him. If I had only one day a year, I would spend it entirely with him.

Fuck everybody else.

I didn't care if I one day fell in love with somebody else.

I didn't care if I one day had a million friends.

I didn't care if I had children, grandchildren.

I didn't care if I was old and wrinkly.

If I could see his smile, his amazing blue eyes at least once a year, I knew it would be worth every single second waiting for him.

"Alright Lani." He said, and I tried my best not to start crying as I forced a smile.

He was lying.

I helped him and Stefan pack, I even put it in the trunk of his car. When Stefan gave me a goodbye hug, I gave him a huge smile and tried not to say anything too mushy. I would miss him though, the brooding forehead was fun to make jokes about. Then I turned to Damon, and reality sunk in.

_So this was it, huh?_

Normally I'd wave them off, not really caring when people passed through my life, but Damon- I knew he was apart of the handful that would stick with me forever, at the very least in my memories.

I swallowed, then faked a smile. He just stood there, and I wanted so bad to hug him- but I knew it was a bad idea. Without thinking, I held out my hand.

"Well it was fun." I said softly, and he looked to my hand, then my eyes and shook it. We held hands for a moment longer than necessary, but then we let go.

_Take me with you._

I wanted to say it so badly.

"You'll take care of the place, won't you?" Damon said, holding out a key. I smiled and nodded, taking it. He didn't even have to ask- they were letting me stay here after all.

_I don't care where you're going..._

"Duh, I'll make sure to clean it and no parties." I teased, making him chuckle.

"You can do with it as you wish Lani."

I stopped smiling at that, and licked my lips.

_I don't care if you lead me astray..._

"Sounds good to me, see you next year?" I asked, the hope evident in my voice. Damon looked like a stranger as he gave his stony smile to me- one I hadn't seen since we first met.

"Definitely."

_I don't care if the road is long and scary..._

I nodded one last time, before opening my mouth to say something, but then it shut of it's own accord, and Damon turned for the car.

"Damon!" I said suddenly, making him turn to look at me. He raised his brows, looking at me curiously, but then I just shook my head. However, he didn't turn around, and his mouth suddenly opened.

"Lani I-" He hesitated, and I refused to tell him, but I was hanging off every last word that came out of his mouth. He seemed to rethink what he was going to say, and instead shut his mouth. "I hope you..." He couldn't say it though, and instead shook his head.

_As long as your hand is in mine..._

"What?" I encouraged, I wanted him to say it- what exactly? I had no idea, but I knew, if he said what my subconscious thought he was going to say, I would never forget him. It was all riding on him now.

"I hope you..." He trailed off again, but this time gave me that foreign smile again.

"I hope you enjoy your stay." He said, and I felt my heart rip a little. Instead of commenting though, I nodded and forced a smile.

_Even if I have to hurt a little, die a little inside..._

"I will."

"Goodbye Lani."

"Goodbye Damon."

With that, he jumped into his car, and before I knew it the two brothers were out of my sight.

"Goodbye, forever I guess." I said softly, and I didn't miss the way he suddenly looked into the side mirror, and I had a feeling he heard me, but I didn't say anything until he was out of view.

_I'll be fine, so please..._

Running back into the house, I ran up into Damon's room, and I collapsed on the sheets, and I cried.

_Please, just don't go._

* * *

"Ash?"

I could hear somebody calling me over the booming of the music. Sitting up, I actually missed the couch entirely and grasped thin air, falling over. I squeaked, but otherwise just laid on the floor as Elena walked in. She was kind of blurry, but I could make out the frown on her face.

"I've hit rock bottom." I muttered, rolling around to sit up. Elena switched off the music, but I frowned and tried to grab the remote, failing miserably. She knelt down by a pile of bottles and picked one up, looking shocked.

"Did you go through all of Damon's scotch?" She asked incredulously. I shrugged, before slowly succeeding in standing up.

"Maaayyybbbeeee." I said. "But seriously, I've hit rock bottom. I've been listening to country and Taylor swift for two days Elena. Help me?" I begged, hoping she'd be more fun.

"How?" She asked, raising a brow at me.

"I dunno, let's go out! Have some fun!" I insisted- anything was better than wallowing in these halls. Elena frowned, looking at me with confusion.

"Ash I'm not old enough to go to the bar."

"It doesn't have to be the bar. Damon and I just wandered around town until something looked fun- or tasty- but mostly fun." I said, drifting out of thought as I stumbled a little bit. Elena looked down at me, confused.

"Then why don't you call him? They can't be that far. It's only been a week."

"Elena you can get around the world in two days, they're long gone." I said, leaning against the fire place and watching the flames dance. "Besides, he said he's coming back on my birthday."

"Well when's your-"

"You don't get it Elena!" I said in a high pitched voice. "He's not coming back! They both aren't, ever!" I said, looking over my shoulder at her. She furrowed her brow, looking really confused.

"But you just said he's coming back on your birthday!" She exclaimed, and I gave a short, humorless laugh.

"He never asked me when it was."

That shut her up, and we both were silent for a moment. In just a weak, I had gone through all the stages.

Day one, I was in denial anything was wrong. Actually I barely did anything out of the ordinary- my schedule didn't let me. Day two was the same, but day three, everything fell to shambles. It dawned on my that they were never coming back, I mean fully kicked in, even if they did? It'd only be for just one day.

The moment the weekend rolled around, I started drinking, and didn't stop, for two days. I wasn't hungry, I was a bit sick from puking so much, but I wasn't bothered otherwise. It was like my body had just decided to shut down completely.

Ugh.

This is getting too depressing.

"I'm going to bed, and when I wake up, fuck the Salvatores. They can kiss my ass." I said, pushing away from the fire and looking at Elena with a flat expression. "I'm done being the damsel in distress." I said flatly.

"Ash-"

"You can stay here if you want, no sense taking that long drive home." I said numbly, heading to the stairs. "I mean if you're into the whole reminiscing thing, you can go to Stefan's room if you really want." I said in a pretty awful tone, but Elena didn't comment as I walked up the stairs. My feet led me to Damon's room- just because it had this awesome bathtub, yeah, that was the only reason.

I spent at least two hours in there, pretending the world didn't exist.

That the Salvatores never existed.

Didn't work one bit.

The bath was nice though.

* * *

I knew I was dreaming.

It was so obvious- people don't look like this over night.

I was looking in a mirror, a young woman very much like myself looking back at me, but I wasn't alone. A man stood next to me, smiling and holding me around my waist. His hand was rubbing my stomach, and somehow I knew. I knew from the look in his eyes- he was my love, and I was bearing his child. He smiled and kissed my cheek, and I felt a smile break out across my face.

For some reason, I looked to my left, and I saw Damon standing there, smiling at me with his wicked smirk.

"Happy 25th." Was all he said, that seductive voice still as amazing as the first time I heard it.

I looked in the mirror again, this time I looked a bit older, my face a bit more weathered. Two children were beside me now. One hold my hand as she clung to my waist, and another standing taller than me and the older looking man next to me. My children and my love huh? I found myself looking over at Damon again- still the same as the first time I had seen him.

He smirked again.

"Happy 40th."

I looked in the mirror again, an elderly woman looking back at me. Reaching up, I touched my wrinkles and long white hair tied in a braid. Man did I look old- but there was nobody else in the picture with me, and I had this strange sense of loss.

Gone, they were all gone. Off somewhere else I suppose. Looking over to Damon, I knew he hadn't changed, not a single hair on his head was different from the last time I saw him.

"Happy 80th, Lani." He said, kissing my forehead. Then when I looked back, I wasn't standing in front of a mirror anymore, instead I was lying in a bed, with Damon sitting beside me, and instead of smirking, he had this sad smile on his face.

"Happy 100th birthday Lani." He said, kissing my hand. I tried to smile, but I suddenly didn't feel anything moving, no thump of my pulse, and then everything went black.

I think I just died.

* * *

_It's not fair._

_I know it's just me, putting up walls and pretending everything is okay._

_I know it's just me, that won't let go._

_Yet I don't want to. I want Damon to come back, but is that fair? Is it fair for him to have to put with me, watch me grow old, watch me die? Is it fair to ask him to give me one day a year for the rest of my life? When I saw it from that point of view, I wasn't mad at him for leaving. I could understand him not wanting to stick around and see me age. I could understand, because although Damon had an eternity to settle down, I didn't. _

_Eventually, I was expected to settle down with a man- women- whatever, and get married, have children, have a house and makes babies. I was expected to be their rock, to guide them on their path, and then retire and talk about the good old days. Damon was just supposed to be a wild ride I had when I was younger, somebody to talk about at the nursing home and brag to have known to all the old women listening in. _

_I was expected to have a quiet passing, to have a small funeral and then pass on from this world. _

_There was nothing about having my best friend visit me, one day a year through out his eternity, for the rest of my life. _

_There definitely wasn't anything about me falling in love with an immortal creature, at least I think I was. It was scary- I had never been that deep before, I had never let myself- yet I didn't regret it. This foreign territory sucked, but I knew, one day Damon would just be a memory, in the backseat of my life wedged somewhere between high school and bullies- and I wouldn't even be remembered by him when the day came that I turned old. _

_So why do I want to cry everytime I think this way?_

_Why do I keep picking up the phone and flipping to his number? _

_He probably has a new phone already- why bother trying to get a hold of him now? That dream kept going through me after that, each time I thought of calling him, and each time I would just put it down and try to think of something else. _

_I doubt Elena is doing much better without Stefan. Actually I think she's got it worse than I do._

I hesitated, hearing a creak in the floor boards.

"Elena?" I called, but there was no answer. "Elena!" I called, this time rather loudly. If she was awake she would hear me anywhere in the house. She didn't answer though, so I slowly put my journal down, and reached for the stake on the night stand- contrary to common belief, vampires keep stakes in their closets.

Quietly, I stood up- with only one of Damon's button down black shirts on, I barely made a sound as I crept down the halls. The fabric didn't rustle a lot, but I tried to keep my back to the wall in case. I made it down to the parlor, the fire still going, and looked around.

The floor creaked.

I spun around and slammed my stake down. It hit someone square in the chest, and I watched him turn grey before hitting the floor. I didn't know him, but I knelt beside him anyways, trying to see if I recognized him at all.

"Missing somebody?"

My blood went cold when I heard someone whisper in my ear.

A scream tore through my throat as he bit down on my shoulder.

"Ash!" Elena shouted, running down the stairs. When she saw me though, she froze too.

"Basement! To the vervain!" I shouted, and she tore down the halls quickly, but a scream ripped through her throat soon after, and I punched the vampire in the face- making him back off because of the vervain dipped ring I was wearing- and then I raced after her.

"Elena!" I shouted as I slammed into the wall, missing the turn. She was being held by a vampire, but before he could sink his teeth into her, I glared really hard at him, using the power of the ring to give him aneurism after aneurism. He finally sunk to the ground, letting her go and she ran. I tried to finish him off, but the vampire from before tackled me. I tried to kick him, but he grabbed my thigh and bit me roughly. I screamed, the other vampire slinking over to me.

"You little bitch." I heard, and looked up to see a, sadly, very familiar face.

Logan Fell.

"I'm going to enjoy drinking you dry."

...What?

I screamed as he and the fallen vampire reached me, one grabbing my wrist and another biting my stomach. They purposefully pulled away and bite a different spot every few seconds.

"GET OFF ME!" I screamed, my blood boiling, my anger rising. I glared daggers into one of them, the power of the ring making him fall unconscious. Then I grabbed at the bench sitting in the hallway next to me, and with strength that was foreign outside of an adrenaline rush, I yanked the bench so hard the leg broke off as the rest flew into Logan, making him fall back. I took the sharp end and stabbed the last vampire in the shoulder, and when he pulled back it came out. So I shoved it into his chest and watched for a second as he fell back, grey and veined.

"Oh," Logan said, and I felt my stomach drop as I realized he was still alive. "I'm really going to enjoy this." He said, launching at me. I went to cover myself, but then I heard him screaming and looked up.

Elena had run out, and tossed vervain all over me, all over Logan too. He flew out of the house then, and I looked to Elena who still had a hand full of vervain.

"Ash, you-"

I cut her off, not daring to look at my own body as it trembled. She held out her hand, and when I took it I caught sight of multiple bite marks on my wrist. Shakily, she pulled me up, but I nearly fell over from fatigue and... blood loss. She put my arm around her shoulder, and I pretended not to feel the sting of my open flesh being pressed on.

"We need to lock ourselves in the basement, we won't be safe until morning Elena." I said, swallowing my own spit instead of water. She nodded quickly, helping me with trembling hands of her own to the basement. When we got down there, I saw she still had a bundle of vervain in her hand.

"Thanks, by the way." I said as she put me on the ground. "I'm sorry I offered for you to stay, you were better off at home." I said, though the world was kind of fuzzy.

"Hey, Ash, focus." She snapped her hands in front of me, but I couldn't look at her for long. "You and I are in this together, we have to survive until morning, okay?"

I barely managed a nod.

"You're bleeding really badly." She said, and I could tell from the panic in her voice, this wasn't good. I must have looked god awful.

"Hmmm." Was all I could say, my head pounding hard. I heard beeping next, and opened my eyes enough to see her holding her arm up high, cell phone in hand.

"No reception." She said, looked down at me, then gulped and looked at the door. I grabbed her arm, and she looked at me.

"Don't, it's not worth it Elena." I said, feeling really sick. She looked at me as I slumped against the wall, and I had such little strength that she easily tore from my hold, walking out the door with the vervain still in hand.

"Elena!" I called, but it was too quiet.

So, this is what it's like to die, huh? Yet even on my death bed, I could only think of one thing. Pulling out my cellphone, I noticed I had three bars- beat that Elena- and dialed his number.

_Ring..._

_Ring..._

"_Couldn't keep away, could you?_" His voice purred, and I laughed at the sound of multiple women laughing in the back ground. A soft chuckle broke through my lips then, of course I wasn't the first- or last- to fall for his charm.

"You know me, I miss you Damon." I said, figuring if I was going to die now, might as well be honest.

"_You sound awful, are you hung over?"_ He asked in a light hearted tone, it almost killed me to think I was going to lie to him.

"Ah, a little. I feel really bad right now. Actually, bad might be a good feeling." I corrected, my voice getting more and more hoarse.

"_Lani? Are you okay?_" He asked, his voice getting a bit concerned.

"Uh yeah. I just... I needed to hear your voice once more." I said, swallowing a bit. My fingers were trembling- how much longer could I hold up the phone?

"_Lani? What happened? What's going on? Do you want me to-_"

"Goodbye Damon, I'm going to miss you the most."

"_Lani!_-"

_Click._

It was done, my one phone call was finished. The next thing I did, was open my contacts and texted something quickly to my old witchy motherly figure. She would probably get my drift, I hoped. For an old witch, she really knew how to text. I was hoping she was answer right away, but she didn't and the room seemed to be getting darker. My phone slipped from my hands, and I softly cursed that I hadn't thought to text her sooner. My hands refused to lift anymore- they felt so heavy.

"Ash! Stefan's on his way! He'll be here- oh my God! Ashlan!" I felt her beating on my shoulders, but my eyes wouldn't stay open, and my body was slowly shutting down.

"Bye." I whispered, feeling more and more at peace with the idea of dying as time went on.

"Ash!" Elena cried, but I felt her beating me less and less. Eventually, even Damon felt like a far away dream.

Goodbye guys.

Then the liquid fire came.

* * *

** Huh, Lani sure gets a lot of near death experiences! Haha I bet she'd kill me if she were real. Okay, well I hope this chapter was good, it was really interesting to write!  
**

**So Lani went through her withdrawals- now what? I wonder if anybody came to save the day? Or...hmmmm... What do you think?**

**I'm just so happy I got reviews!  
**

**So I'm probably going to skip a couple of episodes of VD, just because they have nothing to add to my plot, and because I wanted to add original characters in, so if you noticed I skipped Vicky, it's because I think she was just to help the writer's explain more about Vampires in general, and give Jer a reason to have a pain, buuuut I figured there's other ways of changing the plot line, and since Lani is friends with vampires- we can always have her ask about them.  
**

**Oh! If there is any mistakes and technical errors- eg a vampire walking in the sun without a day...jewelery piece?... and other things less obvious let me know! I tend to get wrapped up in my story and enjoy AU plot lines, but the laws of the world should still be in tact!  
**

**I've had a few people ask the value of Madison and whether Lani is human. Well let's just say- Madison is a VERY big part of my story, and Lani? Human? Not? Well, I know, but you'll just have to wait and find out.  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: Do you think Lani is human? Why do you think Madison is so important?  
**

**Please answer in your reviews! I love to hear what you guys think the answers to my questions are!  
**


	18. The Lost Ones' Memory

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'How To Save A Life' -The Fray  
_

_**Chapter** 17  
_

_"The Lost Ones' Memory"_

* * *

My eyes opened suddenly, and my whole body felt like it had been jolted by electricity.

My heartbeat was ringing in my ears as I sat upright, not daring to move, or even breathe.

Everything was silent.

Then sun was up too.

Just a dream?

Huh, pretty vivid dream then. My body ached a little bit, but otherwise nothing felt off. I touched my body- I wasn't even in the same clothing as the dream, instead in a tank top and pajama bottoms- at all the spots the vampires had bitten me, but it was all clean and smooth. The pale, yet slightly tanned skin was smooth and near flawless- save for the dreaded barely noticeable uneven tan from sleeping outside too much in a bikini.

With a short sigh, I got up from Damon's bed, and walked to the bathroom. Stripping, I turned on the tap and got in. The water was hot pretty fast, but I stood under the running liquid until it felt like my skin was on fire, and scrubbed myself until I felt raw.

When I got out, I slipped on a bra and panties, along with a pair of my skinny jeans lying on the floor, then grabbed one of Damon's crimson red button down shirts and only buttoned about four buttons- leaving my chest and stomach exposed- before walking out and to the kitchen.

"I-I didn't know what to do, so I called you." That was Elena's voice, I guess I did really ask her to stay the night.

"And then?" That voice made me hesitate in mid-step. I couldn't be.

"When I came back, she had lost a _lot_ of blood. I panicked, and then- this happened."

I hurried as quietly as I could, coming to the stairwell and peering down over the edge of the bottom railing. It really was- they- they.

"You came back." I said it in barely a whisper, but both of their heads spun to look at me. I grinned, and I couldn't stop grinning as I hurried down the stairs and stopped short in front of him. His beautiful blue eyes capturing my gaze.

"I- I-" Before I could finish making a fool of myself, Damon smacked me over the head. I knew he could smack harder, but damn did it still hurt!

"You _idiot_! What was that phone call about? Huh? Goodbye? That's it? You gave up just like that?!" Damon shouted at me, and I could feel his rage radiating off of him, and I gulped slightly.

"I-I thought you didn't want to see me anymore so..." I got another slap. "Hey! That hurts!"

"Good. Maybe it'll knock some sense into that thick skull of yours." Damon sneered, looking completely upset.

"I didn't mean to make you angry Damon. Next time I won't call." I said flatly, but boy did that get him fuming. He clenched both hands, this harsh glare in his eyes. Clearly he was fed up, and turned away when Stefan stepped closer to us.

"Damon, maybe we should deal with the problem at hand." Stefan suggested, making me look at him funny.

"What problem?" I asked, but just as I did, I noticed another person in the room. He had been standing by Elena, she looked- not upset, but not happy- and when my eyes fell on him my mind went blank.

Holy fuck.

It couldn't be.

"Ash? You okay?" Stefan asked, but only when he shook me did I realize I had been gawking at the guy. I looked to Stefan, then back to the guy, and shook my head.

"Axel?" I asked, to which he smirked.

"In the flesh." He said casually, and I walked right up to him, Elena stepping away as I stopped barely a foot from his. My hand went to his face, and I slowly, gently, touched his cheek. He grinned down at me, and leaned into my touch. Retracting my hand, I gave him a small smile.

Then all of it went to shits.

I growled, reared back a fist, and punched him so hard he stumbled. His nose was bleeding when he turned back to me, and to make a vampire bleed, you had to be pretty strong. My knuckles hurt, but my rage was far from diminished.

"You _stupid_, selfish, arrogant asshole!" I screeched, punching him in the chest and gut a few times. "You _dare_ to show your face now? After so long? I would kill you if you weren't already dead!"

"So you know, huh?" He asked, catching both my wrists in a flash. I growled, trying to get free as he bent closer to me.

"Of course I know. You look the exact same you asshole."

"Aw you remembered."

"Let me go!"

When I said that, I was suddenly being held with my head against Damon's chest, Axel smirking over at us from where he stood. Damon didn't let me go though, and I didn't fight against him.

"Want to explain what's going on here?" Elena asked, but I didn't move as Axel grinned.

"I could smell your blood," He said, making me frown. "A lot more than usual. You were bleeding pretty bad, weren't you?" He asked rhetorically, making me shiver.

"Who are you?" Damon asked, a sharp clip to his voice. Axel looked to him and raised his brows in a challenge.

"He's my ex." I said, frowning at him. Damon looked down at me, this new intensity in his eyes. "The one who suddenly disappeared and I couldn't find a single trace of." I spat out, but Axel shrugged.

"It was either I left or drank you bone dry." He said, suddenly appearing in front of Damon and I. He held me closer, my head fitting into the crook of his shoulder as I glared up at Axel.

"You're blood is especially alluring," He looked up to Damon, a wicked smirk on his face. "Am I right?" I knew he was teasing, but Damon felt like he was ready to tear the slightly smaller man to shreds.

"Piss off." I spat, not in the mood to hear him talk at all. "You had your chance, now stop following me around."

He smirked, shrugging my comments off.

"You'll look for me babes, you always do." He said, and then the next moment he was gone. Damon let me go as I slammed the front door growling. Turning back, Stefan, Damon, and Elena were all looking at each other, making me frown- what loop was I out of now?

"Lani," Damon said, making me look at him. "Let's go upstairs."

It was then that I realized- Stefan and Elena wanted to _talk_.

Ah.

I followed Damon upstairs and went to sit on his bed. Looking at my journal sitting on the bedside table, I grabbed it and flipped it open to the last entry.

"So it really did happen." I muttered, tossing the book back down. Damon shut the door, walking over to me and sitting next to me.

"Are you alright?" He asked, his voice a little softer than before. I shrugged- was I alright? What was alright anymore? There wasn't any alright right now, just sane and insane.

Guess which side I'm on.

"I guess I... I'm lucky I got out of there, I mean it's not everyday someone gets attacked by vampires, fed on, and lives to tell the tale." I meant to sound victorious, like I had just climbed a big hill, but I didn't, I could her my own voice trembling, my body not wanting to move. Axel had saved my body, but he had done nothing for my mind.

Arms wrapped around me, and the next thing I knew I was crying into Damon's chest, his hand stroking through my wavy locks, his lips kissing my forehead. I tried to stop crying, but it only made things worse. Yet Damon didn't move at all, he didn't say anything hurtful like before, just soft and soothing words that made me feel better.

I sighed, finally done a while later, but Damon didn't seem to think I was done. He looked into my eyes, intense and unwavering. I felt a strange calmness sweep over me everytime I looked into those eyes, a smile breaking through my frown voluntarily.

"Show me," He breathed, making me furrow my brows as he pushed me down and hovered over me. "Show me everywhere they bit you."

I gulped, but did as he said, pointing to my shoulders, my neck, my wrists, my stomach, hips, thighs, calves, ankles... a muscle jumped in his jaw and his eyes widened slightly when he realized how many places had been bitten. This strange, strangled sound came from his throat, but only for a moment, before he picked up my wrist and softly kissed the pulse, where the vampires had bitten me.

There was a second where I gasped, expecting a sharp pain, but I could only feel his lips as he kissed my wrist. He picked up my other wrist then, and kissed the pulse there too, before leaning down and kissing my neck, shoulder, and then repeating on the other side.

"No one..." He said, kissing my stomach, his eyes and mine locked as he kissed my hips, his soft lips making me gasp as he hooked a thigh over his arm and kissed the inside- I tried to fight the red of my cheeks, but it was no use.

"Will ever..." He added, running his lips all the way down my leg and to my ankle, where he kisses tenderly.

"Touch you..." He said, doing the same to my other leg. I couldn't help the soft moan coming from my lips. He crawled back up my body, kissing along the way until he softly kissed my neck again, then rested his forehead against mine.

"Not while I'm here." He said firmly. I smiled, looking down at his lips for a second, then back to his face. I wanted to kiss him so badly, but I knew it would never be me. It would always be Katherine, it was never about me, because he was only back because he probably got a new way to open the tomb- still, I would pretend it would be about me, just a little while longer. I would wait for him to kiss me though, because I knew kissing him wasn't that good of a call.

I didn't want to be another lay.

"Now go to sleep for a bit."

"I've been sleeping for a while." I insisted, but Damon just smiled down to me, his hand caressing my face.

"A little longer, don't want you getting weak now."

"Hmmm...Never..." I said, and surprisingly, I fell right back to sleep.

* * *

I woke up sometime during the night.

Damon was moving around the room.

"Mmmm... Damon?" I asked, making him out in the shadows of the room. He stopped and looked at me, and then I realized.

Shuffling around the room...

Fuck.

"Hey," He said, suddenly sitting next to me on the bed. "Go back to sleep." He said, caressing my face, but I shook my head.

"Are you leaving?" I asked, pain evident in my weary voice. He nodded.

"Just for a while, I'll be back." He said, but I grabbed his hand and held it tight. "Lani-"

"No, I don't want you to leave Mystic Falls, I don't want you to leave this house, I don't want you to leave this _room_ without me!" I insisted, feeling myself getting riled up. Damon smiled down at me, kissing my forehead.

"I'll be back, just get some rest." Damon said, but I wouldn't let go.

"Hang on, what about Logan?" I asked, to which he shrugged.

"Found him already dead, probably got a new vampire hunter in town." He muttered, sounding a bit pissed off.

"Here then." I said, giving him both of my rings. He raised a brow, curious. "Even if Logan is gone, other vampires will be coming, so if you care about my safety, you have to give these back to me when you return." I said softly, and Damon sighed.

"Lani-"

"Please, please don't leave. I can help you find a way to open to tomb. I'll get Katherine out for you, just please don't leave yet. One more year, one more month- day, hour. Please Damon, don't go." I begged, but he sighed and took both of my rings. I made the mistake of looking him in the eye then.

"Go to sleep, Lani." He said, and when I awoke later, my rings were lying on the bedside next to me.

I cried.

* * *

"So tell me again why you wanted to spontaneously go on a hike?" Stefan asked, but I shrugged, jogging ahead to reach the top of the hill.

"Well considering both Elena and Damon have decided to scurry off to Georgia, I figured we could have a little bonding time too." I said with a smile, Stefan chuckling as he appeared next to me.

"There's more than than Lani," He said, looking out to the horizon, then back to me. "There's always a bit more with you, isn't there?" He chuckled, making me grin.

"I actually..." I began, looking down. "I wanted to know a bit more about Madison." I said, and we both began to randomly start walking. Stefan's expression changed to a bit of sorrow, but he didn't reject it.

"What do you want to know?" He asked. I bit my lip- where to start?

"How is she related to me? You and Damon told me she died young, when was there time for a baby?" I asked, but he shook his head.

"That I don't know, Madison never had any children in the span I had known her. She had become pregnant, but she miscarried and lost the child barely three months in." He said, sounding a little upset.

"Did you know the father?" I asked, to which he chuckled and gave a wry smirk.

"Yes."

"I see," I said, noticing he wasn't elaborating, so I changed the subject. "So why do we look alike?" I asked, to which Stefan looked at me with a surprised expression. I rolled my eyes.

"Emily called me Madison- it doesn't take that long to put two and two together." I said, and he sighed. "Not to mention you and Damon always staring at me when we first met, it was getting to be obvious." I said, feeling awkward.

"Yeah," Stefan whispered. "You could definitely be her twin." He said softly. "Much like Katherine and Elena could be." He said, and I nodded.

"Do you know why?" I asked, but he shook his head. "Then tell me about Madison, what was she like?" I asked.

"Haven't you asked Damon before?" Stefan asked, but I frowned.

"Damon won't answer very much about her, when he starts to open up, he gets upset and ignores me for a while after." I said, a little sad he had done that. Stefan didn't look that surprised though, he even snorted a bit.

"I'm not surprised really." He said, before looking ahead, ignoring my stares.

"Madison was very much different from most women. She wasn't afraid to put on pants and run around and get dirty. A lot of people shunned her behavior, but I, I found myself drawn to her in a strange way. She was unafraid of anything, even things most men shuddered at. She was so calm and level headed, and she was no angel by any means. She never had any hidden agendas, but she wasn't afraid to give her honest opinion of you out, good or not."

"Sounds like you liked her a lot." I said, hinting. Stefan chuckled, shaking his head.

"Ah, it started as a crush, but she made it clear she only had eyes for one man." He said honestly. "From there, I saw her as a sister of sorts. Living with my family, she and I saw each other a lot." He said, but I shook my head.

"Wait, what man did she go for?" I asked, and he looked at me with a smile.

"She fell in love with Damon."

I gawked at that- thank god, I wasn't the first Corral to fall for his charms.

"Oh."

Great reply Ashlan.

"Yes, Madison, even from day one, only had eyes for him. He saved her from a wolf attack, and from that day on she always watched him, and it was as though he was the most fascinating creature alive. She was infatuated with him, and perhaps that is what led to her downfall." He said, and we stopped walking to sit on a rock. I quirked a brow, a little confused.

"Wait- what?" I asked, but Stefan continued.

"Needless to say, when a pretty girl caught Damon's eye, he couldn't resist. But Madison wasn't like most girls Damon had met. She wasn't looking for sex."

"What did she want from Damon?" I asked, curious, making Stefan smile down at me.

"His love." He said, and my eyes widened. "Madison was the first person I had ever met, who kept Damon's interest for more than a week. She was always fascinated with him, infatuated really. It was like she was a librarian and Damon was her library. She had to know every fact about him, every detail in order. Damon wasn't used to this though, he was actually quite nervous around her."

"Damon? Nervous?" I laughed, Stefan did too. "What happened next?" I asked, feeling like a child being told a bedtime story.

"Damon and Madison, they took the next step." He said, and I raised my brow, but then I understood.

"Oh." I said, looking to the ground.

"I had never seen Damon so happy," He said, and I looked up to him and smiled a bit. "It was like Madison lit up his world."

"And then?"

"He proposed."

...

"What?! What did she say?!" I asked, getting excited. Stefan grinned.

"She said yes. And she was pregnant just days before the wedding." He said, and it was then that my smile began to fade. I realized this was where the downward spiral had to begin, because there was no Madison today at all.

"But that wedding never happened, did it?" I asked, to which Stefan bit back a frown and shook his head. "What happened?" I asked.

"Katherine came."

Oh.

"She first saw us both, Madison had taken to rest due to being with child, Damon and I were always joking around then. When she realized one of us was taken, she took matters into her own hands." He said, and my eyes widened.

"Did she- she didn't kill her, right?" I asked, and Stefan gave me a very upset look.

"No, she did much worse."

I gulped.

"Since Katherine couldn't simply seduce Damon too, she sought to ruin everything. She wanted to win without compulsion- I know that because she openly spoke about it before compelling me to forget. Madison stood her ground though, and when Katherine tried to compel her, she threatened to expose her for who she was. So Katherine turned to Emily for a spell. The next day, Madison miscarried her child."

My body trembled, and I shook my head. That poor girl, she didn't deserve that.

"Madison was still strong though, and even as she and Damon mourned, she didn't back down. Katherine played dirty then." He said, and I was literally leaning on the edge of my seat to hear more.

"Then what?"

"She controlled Damon's mind too, and compelled him to meet her after the Founder's Ball. I only found this out a few weeks ago, but Madison walked in on Damon and Katherine, but still, she believed in Damon. I guess she knew more about vampires than I thought, because she didn't even think for a moment Damon hadn't been compelled."

"So she stole Damon away then?" I asked, and he nodded.

"She did it slowly, making Damon slowly forget she ever existed." Stefan said, but I shook my head.

"But vervain, why didn't she just-"

"Katherine doesn't like to share. She threatened to kill us both if Madison ever put vervain into our systems." Stefan said, making me frown. So all this time Damon had loved Madison, and then he was forced to forget she ever existed?

"So then what?" I choked out.

"Katherine had been making us drink from her. Damon claims he was never compelled, but I doubt it. She planned to turn us, she talked of making Madison the reason for us completing our transformation, she wanted us to drink her dry." He said, hesitating.

"So Katherine never killed Madison?" I asked, to which Stefan shook his head. "Who did?" I asked, not liking the clench in my gut.

"I did."

My eyes widened, and my heart skipped a beat.

"Why would you-"

"Madison had gone to my father, explaining that Katherine was a vampire. She said she would willingly kill her herself if not for the circumstances. My father spiked my drink with vervain so that when Katherine drank from me she was poisoned. When she was taken though, we tried to rescue her, but we were shot and killed."

"Then?"

"When we woke up, I went to my father. Turns out he was the one that killed us. He said Madison had told, but my memories were still repressed, I didn't remember the Madison I had known. I accidentally wounded Father, and killed him when I drank from him. However, when I went back to explain my new world to Damon, he was ready to die."

"Damon was... ready?" I asked, confused. Stefan nodded.

"He too had not remember Madison yet Ash, he believed Katherine burned in the church. Then Madison showed up, yelling at us for getting ourselves killed. She said she never wanted us apart of it, but my rage was greater than anything. I drank from her, and forced Damon to drink from her too. I was so angry, I snapped her neck, and she died." He said, looking to the ground with a frown on his face.

"Stefan..." I said, wrapping an arm around him.

"If I had waited just a second longer, it would've been back. The memories, they came back the same second I snapped her neck." He said, rubbing his face. I patted his back, then rubbed it a bit.

"Damon hates me for it. He cursed me, wished me misery for eternity. I know he'll never forgive me for ruining his love." He said, but I just turned to fully hug him.

"Stefan, there is no doubt in my mind Damon doesn't hate you that much. It's like sibling rivalry on the vampire mutant scale, that's all." I said, trying to joke. He leaned up again, taking deep breaths. "I know Damon may say stupid things, and a lot of them hurt, but are his brother Stefan. I have no doubt if push came to shove, he'd be there for you." I said firmly, making Stefan smile.

"Madison had the same strong opinions on Damon."

"Must be a Corral thing." I teased, but then I frowned. "Wait, if Damon was so in love with Madison, why is he chasing Katherine?" I asked, confused. Stefan shook his head.

"After Madison died, we got all of our suppressed memories back. Damon seemed to think forgetting his feelings for Madison was easier if he directed those same emotions onto someone else, someone within his grasp."

"Katherine." I said, it all dawning on me. Stefan nodded, and I shivered a little bit.

"I was hoping he would stop." Stefan said, looking down to the ground for a moment, and I furrowed my brows.

"Why?"

"Because he met you." Stefan said, sounding so very sure. "You are, in more than just looks, the duplicate of Madison. I thought that Damon would remember her and stop chasing Katherine, but I was wrong."

So I was right.

"I'm just a replacement, huh?" I asked, though I didn't need an answer. Stefan smiled sadly, and went to open his mouth, but shut it again.

"I'm sorry Ash." Was all he said, before he got up and walked away. I didn't follow, just sat on the rock and thought a little bit.

So Damon really loved this Madison, and I was a replacement, but he wanted to get Katherine out of the tomb because she was a distraction. This all led down one single road. This road filled with rage and spite as I thought of all the lost moments Damon could never have with his beloved again. This overwhelming frustration, yet acceptance at what had happened. I didn't understand my emotions, all except one.

Rage.

I wanted Katherine dead, for hurting Damon, Madison, Stefan, and possibly thousands more.

I wanted her head hung up on a mantle for all to see.

I'd kill her myself if I had to.

Now... to get that tomb open.

* * *

**Wow, you guys are insistent that she's not human. Are you sure? I mean cuz right now I'm laughing so hard reading your reviews. Thanks guys, I love it when people review.  
**

**yawn, it's late though. I did this instead of homework, so I may me murdered tomorrow... sorry guys haha. Three chapters in one day though? I deserve a prize then. Ten reviews? Can y'all do that? That'd be so totally spanking!  
**

**So, like this chapter?  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: What do you think of Madison's story? Like? Hate? Eh?  
**


	19. You Can't Be Corrupted By Me

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'Never Say Never' -The Fray  
_

_**Chapter** 18  
_

_"You Can't Be Corrupted By Me"_

* * *

"Okay so the flight from Toronto should be taking off soon. Make sure you have all of your things and please, for the love of God, don't forget your suitcase in the airport again." I said, pacing around Damon's room, tossing clothes on and flitting through a book at the same time.

"Okay Ashlan! I get it!" The voice said, sounding irritated.

"Okay, I know, I'm paranoid, but you've set me back so many times. Are you sure we can't Skype this interview?" I asked, hopeful, but she just made a noise.

"Ash I did not become a famous reporter by Skyping all of my interviews! I got live in person ones! Cameras! Lights!"

"Oh the drama!" I added, laughing a bit. "Okay Dani, make sure to check into the Mystic Falls Hotel before midnight and they should be happy." I said before hanging up and packing a few things into a bag.

"Hmm, what else? Oh, how about the essentials Lani?" I said asked myself. "No wait I just need the products..." I replied, scratching my chin as I stared at my tiny bag.

This was a bit of a dilemma.

"Going somewhere?"

I nearly jumped when I heard his voice, and turned to see him leaning against the door frame. That one eyebrow cocked a bit, but I just rolled my eyes.

"Nice to see you too. How was Georgia? I'm doing great having a mental break down BTW." I said, crossing my arms. Damon walked to me, stopping a foot away. He glanced down at the bag, then back to me.

"Where are you going?" He asked, sounding a bit more serious. This pissed me off a bit, but I just shrugged and turned to pack.

"Places, I've been hiding away in this town so long, but some people want to meet me so I've got to go and, well, meet them." I said, shutting my bag as I buttoned up the crimson shirt I had been wearing a few days ago. "I'll see you around." I said vaguely, going to grab my bag, but Damon grabbed my wrist and spun me back to him.

"Where are you going Lani?" He asked, making me frown.

"Does it matter? You made it clear you didn't want to see me again before, why is it different now?" I challenged, but before he could talk, I opened my mouth first.

"I know you're back because you found another lead on opening the tomb," I said, and he gave me a funny look. "And trust me, I'm going to stick around to help you, but once she's out Damon, I don't expect us to talk again."

With that, I grabbed my back and pushed past him, heading out the door. I turned to shut it, and noticed he was looking to the ceiling as though praying for patience, but I ignored him and slammed the door before heading downstairs. Every step had me thinking in a different way- was it normal for one to be upset when they found they were just the rebound girl, the replacement? Of course! Was I blowing this out of proportion? Probably, but right now, I didn't want to dare think for a second we could work. I didn't want to think about afterwards, about never seeing Damon again.

I kept having that dream, the one of me growing old, watching my life pass by, and each time I realize more and more, Damon and I might seem awesome now, but everything ends eventually.

Nothing is eternal.

Even the immortals.

So why take a chance on it now? Just become another notch in the wood, and for what? A fling that couldn't work out and would just make me hurt more in the end? Like I said before- I wasn't the first, nor will I be the last, to fall for his charms. I refused to be in the crowd though.

"I sense self doubt~!" He sung from his seat on the couch. I just rolled my eyes and glared at him.

"Why are you here Axel?" I asked, frowning as a headache came on. He just chuckled and leaped up to stand next to me.

"I just wanted to see your beautiful face every morning and say 'ahhhh, what a sight!' can't you believe that?" He asked, sounding like he was talking to a baby. I rolled my eyes and slapped his hands away when he tried to cup my cheek.

"You'll be screaming 'Ahhhh' pretty soon." I said sharply, but Axel was funny in the sense that every comment you made could be dirty.

"As long as I'm with you babes." He teased, but I just rolled my eyes.

"Where's Stefan?" I asked, going to the kitchen to make some breakfast.

"He went to Elena's, did you know she got attacked? Did you know she and Damon went off to Georgia together?" He teased, but I just poured some coffee, unfazed.

"Is the guy still hanging around? Or did Damon take care of the attacker?" I asked, giving Axel a glare.

"Here I thought only Vampires could turn their emotions off. Apparently humans can too." He said, pouring himself a cup of coffee. I snorted into my cup and took a sip.

"Bitch please, I'm a special human." I teased, but ultimately didn't change my face.

"Elena's fine by the way. Damon saved her- like the damsel in distress she was. It was all romantic I bet, you know, him carrying her unconscious form as they walked off into the sunset."

I took the biggest knife I could reach and stabbed it between his fingers. He looked at me with slightly widened eyes, but I was grinding my teeth so hard I didn't even notice at first if I hit him or not. His hand had been on the cutting board, and I had stabbed so hard a little piece went into the wood.

"You could've cut my fingers off."

"They'll grow eventually." I spat, Stefan choosing this time to appear. He looked at the situation, at each of us, and then at the knife with a furrowed brow.

"Stefan, would you care to practice throwing knives?" I asked, yanking the knife out and putting it back in the holder. Stefan went to pour himself a cup of coffee, noticing how Axel and I were now having a glaring contest.

"Is everything okay?" Stefan asked, but I just shook my head.

"No, I want him out of this town, now!" I said sharply, before getting up. "Forget it, I've got people to meet."

"Like Dani?" Axel countered, making me glare as I stood up.

"Stop shoving your knowledge of my life down my throat." I spat, chucking my half empty cup in the sink and storming out.

"Tell Law and Dani I said hi!" He called, but I flipped the middle finger.

"Fuck you!"

"I wish!"

* * *

"That stupid, asshole of a little bugger." I muttered, trying to keep it down as Elena looked over to me.

"Are you okay?" She asked. Elena had been driving through town when she saw me, and I figured getting a ride with her was better than swallowing my pride and talking to Damon.

"No!" I said loudly, making her jump. Then I bit back a sigh and shook my head. "My ex is in town, who also happens to be a vampire. And before you ask, Axel is an ass, but he's probably not the one who attacked you." I said, making her nod quickly.

"Sounds complicated, but why are you so mad?" She asked, and I bit my lip.

"Let's just say, Axel disappeared when I needed him most. When I thought he was the only thing dragging me through my rough time." I said bitterly.

"Did you love him?" She asked, and I fell silent.

"Mmm, I think I could've, if he had stayed." I muttered, Elena giving me a sympathetic glance. "That's changed now, I've got too much going on." I said, and Elena smiled.

"I knew it, you've got the hots for Damon." She teased, then made a face. "Though I don't know why or how." She said, making me chuckle.

"It's a lot more complex Elena. What I feel for Damon doesn't matter. What Damon wants, Damon gets. He wants Katherine out of that tomb, and I'm going to help. That way he can move out of town and I can move on with my bitter life." I said flatly, making her look at me.

"Is that really what you think?"

"How can I think anything else Elena? I'm just a replacement, a toy." I said, feeling even more bitter. Elena bit her lip, glanced at me, then shook her head.

"I don't know what's going to happen, I don't know if we're all going to get through this. But I want you and me to look back on this in twenty years, and I want us to laugh and say it wasn't as hard as we thought it would be." She said, and I actually smiled.

"Alright, but y'know, I'm technically supposed to be your teacher, getting brownie points in friendship doesn't work in the classroom." I teased, Elena laughed.

"Oh Darn."

* * *

"So as you can see, I will not be taking a photo with you." I said, despite Dani glaring at me.

"Come on Ash! You can't hide your face from the world forever!" She scolded, making me chuckle- no I couldn't do it forever, maybe once I was old and grey and starving for attention I'd let the world know who I was.

"Well I'll save it for a later date, you got your interview, correct?" I challenged, leaning against the bar counter. Dani had insisted we do this in a casual environment- she hated the sight of offices or anything similar to one.

"Ashlan, you know I love you, but between you and Maria- God you caused me so much trouble." She said, shaking her head. I rolled my eyes, but smiled at her.

"Hows Law been? I haven't seen him in over a year." I said, taking a gulp of my water. Dani had insisted no alcohol until after the interview, but apparently that meant after she was gone. It was weird- she usually dived into the drinks.

"He's been fantastic Ash! Did you know?" She asked, and I quirked a brow as she showed her hand to me. My eyes widened when I saw the giant rock on her finger.

"He proposed?" I asked, surprised. Law was never the sit down type of man. We had been good friends for a while, but once he met Dani they both moved to New York together to follow their dreams in journalism.

"Yes! And that's not all!" She said, and I almost knew right then.

"How many months?" I asked, and she grinned.

"First one." She said, rubbing her belly. I laughed.

"You don't look fat yet then." I teased, and she slapped my arm playfully. So that was why there was no drinking, huh, Dani's getting married. To Law no less... There was an awkward feeling in my gut at that, despite my playing along with the whole charade, I felt...

Jaded?

Cheated?

It felt like I had lost something important, like Dani was pouring salt in a wound, but I couldn't place my finger on it. What I did know, was I wanted to hit Dani, to yell at her and tell her to stop talking about names, my heartbeat was pounding in my ears, drowning out her talk, but no matter how much I tried, I just couldn't make the pain go away.

What the fuck is wrong with me?

"Ash? You okay?" Dani asked, and I just nodded, waving for the bartender to get me some bourbon.

"It's a lot to process." I said, downing the glass the moment it touched the counter. "I mean, just three years ago you, me, Law, Maria, hell even Axel- we were all in our crazy hitch group. We were... happy. And yet we weren't. I guess I'm just... jealous you pulled yourself out of the sink hole first. You and Law, together." I said, giving a sad smile to Dani. She gave a knowing smile, her chocolate orbs softening as she twirled a strand of her ebony hair.

"I know it must've been hard. I heard from Law that Axel suddenly vanished. Ash, you have no idea how sorry I am that it didn't work. If anything, I thought you two were going to be together to the end." She said, and I knew she was honest. I liked Dani, because she spoke her mind, she had spunk, and she wasn't afraid to state the facts- good or bad. Smiling, I shrugged.

"You really think so?" I asked, not at all sounding hopeful.

"Yes! You and Axel- you told each other everything. I've never seen two people more comfortable with each other before! Honestly, it was like you two were two parts to a cookie cutter romance." I raised a brow at her. "Oh you know- Heroine that's down at the slumps finds an insanely hot and sexy man who sweeps her off her feet and loves her with all he's got. You changed Ash, for the better, he made you better." She said, and I downed another glass in one go, wincing slightly at the sting of the liquid.

"And then he left me, yeah, one Hell of a cookie cutter romance that was." I muttered, frustration evident on my face. "He led me on, made me believe I could trust him, and then dropped me like a ton of bricks. Doesn't matter what he says, he's never coming back into my life." I said, because there was no excuse. He's a vampire- so what? Damon is, and Damon wasn't running away because of that.

He was running away because he was forcing himself to be in love with a homicidal bitch.

Fuck.

"Did you know he's back in town?" I asked, and Dani looked at me with wide eyes.

"Here? What did he find you? That's so hot, I mean I bet he really-"

"Dani," I began, biting back a few choice words as I looked over to her. "Let's get this straight. Axel is no longer on my radar, in fact I don't feel anything but rage right now. There was no excuse good enough to leave me for five years. And you know what? I don't care about love or fun anymore, because it sucks. Fuck Axel, fuck Damon, fuck anybody who tries to make me feel anymore, because at the end of the day, it's just me. I'm always going to be alone." I said, feeling myself getting more and more bitter as time went on. Standing up, I grabbed my jacket and whirled around-

To come face to face with Damon.

He looked at me for a moment, that stony expression on his face. I couldn't do this though, I wouldn't do this now. So I shoved past him, Dani calling after me- I ignored her.

"Pretty big speech back there." Damon said as he suddenly was walking beside me. I ignored him and kept walking to the Boarding House though.

"You seem tense, is something wrong?" He asked in a sarcastic voice. I looked up to him, and he was glaring down at me, making me stop in my tracks.

"I don't know Damon, is something wrong with you?" I countered, feeling my anger boiling. "Before you answer, just tell me. The morning you left, did you think you were waking up with me, or with Madison?" I asked, and when I saw his eyes widen slightly, I knew the answer. Shaking my head, I let out a bitter laugh.

"See this is why I'm so upset Damon. I want to be your friend no matter what-"

"You keep saying that, but does it really mean anything?" He said while cutting me off, but I ignored him and continued.

"No matter what, I want us to somehow be friends. But there are so many reasons we can't!" I said, and started to walk again- Damon grabbing my arm and yanking me back.

"Why?" He demanded, but I just shook my head.

"Let's start with the fact that as I age, you won't. It might be fine now, but twenty years from now? Forty? Are you going to want to be there, watching me slowly die? I know I'd hate it, knowing my friend was one step closer to death. I couldn't expect you to go through the same thing." I said, but Damon shook his head.

"I would stay Lani, I would watch you grow old and I would be happy for you, because you can do what I can't. You can feel life as a rush because you only have a little time. You will never be like me if I have a say, because I never want you to feel the way I do." He said sharply, making me bite back my words. The list, what else was on the list?

"Fine, you have a strange obsession with aging, I get it. Let's not include that you were never planning to visit me again unless I had called you? Let's not forget that part." I said smugly, making him growl. A gasp ripped from my throat when I felt my back pressed to a tree. Damon was glaring down at me, his hands on my leather jacket.

"Don't be stupid Lani, you really think I could stay away?" He asked, but I knew the answer.

"Maybe once you convinced yourself I wasn't Madison, maybe then I'd be nothing."

He let go of me, his hands trembling as his muscles jumped and he looked to the sky as though praying to a god for patience again.

"I am not Madison Damon, you can't use me as a replacement!" I insisted, but jumped when he punched the tree by my head so hard it cracked.

"I'm not Lani!" He shouted, but then it got a bit quieter as he swallowed. "Not anymore." He said, looking from my lips to my eyes as he got right up in my face.

"Then what about Katherine?" I challenged, because I knew this would make him cave. "You can't tell me you spent the last 145 years loving her and then it's suddenly going to disappear. Once she's out, you're going to leave, and you're never coming back."

"I already told you." He said, his body encasing me against the tree. His eyes were darting all over my face, and then he leaned down, his eyes barely and inch from mine as our foreheads touched.

"I will never leave you alone, not even if you begged me." He said sharply, making my breath get a bit faster. His lips were right there, just barely an inch from me, I looked to them and then to his eyes- waiting for him to move. My fingers made their way to his shirt and jaw, holding their places as I waited. I wanted him to do it, to kiss me, I was waiting- god why did it feel like we'd been here for hours?

A twig snapped, making Damon yank me to his chest and my whole body go tense.

Axel walked out from behind some trees.

"Hope I wasn't interrupting anything." He teased with a smirk, making me roll my eyes. Damon was growling, I could feel it from my hand still on his jaw. Actually growling, like an animal guarding his kill. I gulped.

"No, you weren't." Damon said smugly, before grasping my head and making me look up to him. Before I could get any words out, his lips fell on mine. My eyes widened for a second, Axel was watching with a frown- wait why do I care?- I couldn't resist though, and I found my hands grasping his face and kissing him back.

He pulled away a second later, a triumphant look on his face. I realized then, that he was just using me to goad Axel, and my high hopes came crashing down. Pulling away, I looked at the two. Both were giving me a funny look, but I just ignored it.

"Well, if you'd like to take this cat fight to another level, count me out." I said, before walking away.

Fuck you Damon.

* * *

_Turns out I was right. _

_Damon and I? We're too messed for each other. I trust him, he's my friend, but I don't think we could ever be more. He used me today, to get to Axel, and I hated it, I hated every second of it. I felt like my breaths were getting shorter and shorter on my walk to the boarding house. Stefan knew something was wrong too, but I just couldn't handle it. _

_I never meant to get in so deep, I just wanted to figure him out. I wanted to learn what his game was, to show him that there is someone who could be his match. _

_Still, I hate Katherine, I hate her with a huge passion. Funny huh? I've never met her, but I know I want her to be in the deceased line. If Damon leaves with her- fine. If she sticks around though, I will for sure kill her. Which is why Damon and I can never be friends afterwards. Even if he did want to stick around, I couldn't let him. Katherine has hurt him so bad, why is he still in love with her? Stefan says that Damon's focusing on Katherine to try and forget Madison. _

_I feel so bad sometimes, for Damon, for Madison. Sometimes, I wish it were her down there, and sometimes I'm glad it's Katherine. Had Madison been trapped down there- as a vampire maybe- I would've been happy. Damon could find his true love, they could be happy, and maybe I could still be friends with them both. At the same time, I knew that Damon could never return my feelings. _

_Harsh things we humans are. We trap ourselves in these cages, and the only way out is for us to open the lock from the inside. _

_After all, the strongest cages are the ones we build for ourselves. _

_I've caged myself by becoming involved with a vampire, his vampire brother, and now his vampire/human past. I know how to break the lock, to let myself free, but do I want to? I could move out of town, I could tell Damon how I really feel, I could even just get away from him and never look back. _

_Yet I don't want to, when I was listing reasons we couldn't be friends, I was waiting for Damon to correct me, to tell me I was completely wrong. He couldn't though, because it was all true. _

_As I am, as he is, it will never work. Even if I were a vampire, there were still so many walls. _

_Humanity sucks, it binds us to these emotions. Our desires to go against the stream, to be unique and interesting individuals, it's what kills us the most. Becoming unique as makes us susceptible to pain. The more unique we become, the more chances people notice us, the deeper we delve into relationships. Sometimes the sting of a bad ending stays no matter what. _

_Axel and I, we are over. He dug me out of that hole, but he tossed me right back in. _

_I wish Damon wouldn't do the same._

* * *

The shower was lovely- I knew there was a reason Damon's room rocked. I came out with my tank and shorts on, drying my long hair with a towel. Damon was lying on the bed... reading my journal...!

"Damon!" I growled, snatching it away, but it was too late. The page he was on was the very last entry, and I felt a bit of panic rise inside of me. He sat up, smirking, but I just frowned and went to grab my jewelery from the night stand-

Nothing was there.

"Looking for something?" Damon teased, holding all of it in his hand. I frowned, holding out my opposite hand for him to give it back, but he didn't.

"Damon-" I warned, but he cut me off.

"I'll give it back, but Lani, we need to talk." He said, playing with the jewelery in his hand. I frowned, but sat on the bed next to him, looking at the floor.

"Okay, shoot." I said, and suddenly he was just talking so fast- it was hard to process.

"Well when I first met you, you were right. You look so much like Madison that I- I just couldn't stay away. When I drank you blood, it was just like hers." He said, sounding far away. "I hated you, because you reminded me so much of her, but when you saved my ass in the alley way, I saw Madison more than I saw you."

I looked from him to the ground, then back to him. He looked at me, his brow furrowed.

"Why are you telling me this Damon?" I asked, but he shrugged.

"Because after that, I wanted to know Ashlan Corral. I wanted to know why you and Madison Corral were so alike. I searched and searched and- nothing. There was no record of Madison being related to you at all." Damon said, and I gulped. "When you unlocked me from the basement, I forgot about Madison, and I was only thinking of you."

"Damon why-"

"Shhh, I'm telling you this, because I want you to know. I tried to make you and Madison two different people, and I'm still trying. But Lani the more I learn about you, the more you and her blend into one person. It's not like Elena and Katherine- being two different personalities- you and Madison could've been the same person."

I looked down, feeling tense and worried.

"Why say this?" I asked, and he cupped my chin and made me look him dead in the eye.

"Because despite how much I tried, I managed to sort one thing out. Whether you're like Madison or not, you are special Lani." He said, and I could feel my heartbeat quicken.

"What-"

"I wanted to tell you, I can't choose you, because you are so special. I'd never want you to put up with someone like me." He said, looking pained. I shook my head, grasping his shirt.

"Damon don't-"

"I love you Lani."

There it was. My heart just broke, because I realized what he was saying. He agreed, we could never be together, we could never work out because he didn't want to hurt me.

"I don't care if I become a horrid monster. Damon please, please don't-" He kissed me then though, and I felt a tear roll out of the corner of my eye. He pulled back and brushed my hair away from my face.

"I want you to have everything Lani. It was because of me that Madison died, and I refuse to let that happen to you. I will never be selfish with you Lani, because I love you." He said, kissing my forehead, inhaling deeply. Then he pulled away and looked me dead in the eye.

I felt the familiar lull then, my chest aching as I realized what he was doing.

"You won't remember this in the morning." He said.

I won't remember this conversation- no, I would. Damon I will remember-

"You and I will always be friends." He said, looking upset.

We were always going to be friends anyways Damon, despite what either of us think.

"Because you and I don't love each other, you don't love me, and I don't love you." He said, his voice low and pained.

It was like he shut a door in my mind, and suddenly all these conflicting feelings broke off of me- a weight was lifted from my back. I love Damon though, you can't just forget all... of that... emotion like it's...

Nothing.

I suddenly felt nothing for him. I felt like when we first started to be friends, like there was nothing more than that though.

Oh no- Damon please-

"I will always be here for you Lani, but in the morning, you're going to help me find a way to get Katherine back, and we will say goodbye once we do." He said, kissing my head once more.

"Now go to sleep."

So I did.

* * *

**Whew! Next chapter! Okay back to school haha! I just realized that I only have about ten chapters before the sequel comes out! So I figured instead of going with the story line I want to branch off and add my own sub plot in and then keep going.  
**

**How many of you guys hate Madison right now? Cuz she is one of Damon's big isssues. lol, I love this. So Lani and Damon are in a rough patch... and I never said whether Lani is human or not, but do you guys have guesses on what she could be?  
**

**REALLY LONG ASSED CHAPTER TOO! LONGEST ONE YET!  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: Do you think Damon did the right thing?  
**


	20. Yet We Still Stand Together

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'Sexyback' -Justin Timberlake  
_

_**Chapter** 19  
_

_"Yet We Still Stand Together"_

* * *

_So it turns out I can be compelled. _

_It's not like a normal compulsion though. _

_For starters, I remember every single word that ever rolled out of Damon's mouth, every detail of that night as though it were crystal clear. _

_Secondly, I still knew what I had originally felt that night. _

_However, everytime I tried to force those feelings back, or tried to think of how I honestly feel about Damon, my mind just resorts to four words. _

_Damon is my friend._

_That's all I can think each time I even try to the L word. _

_It sucks. _

_Yet at the same time, I feel great. I'm frustrated that I'm missing that important feeling, but at the same time it's like a big weight has been lifted from my shoulder. _

_You would never think losing your love would make life easier, but I was a prime example. _

_I have tried to remember those lost feelings, but for some reason, it's like there's this glass wall between me and them. _

_I know they're there, but I can't touch. _

_Fuck my life. _

_Of course I can't let Damon know any of this, but if I spontaneously stop writing in a journal that might also raise an alarm or two. _

_Which is why I'm using so many spaces. _

_To use pages up._

_I'm going to put this diary in the last place Damon would ever think to look for it, where I want to one day look back and read. _

_Why else keep a journal? _

_In the mean time, I'm going to start in another one. _

_Because I just used up the last page. _

_Go me._

I sighed, slapping the book shut, and laid back on the couch. People talk about the 'morning after' being really awkward, and I understand. I mean the morning after your first kiss, a one time fling, even after your wedding. It can hit home like a ton of bricks, but nobody ever talks about the awkward morning after your crush tries to erase your memories, fails, and then you have to keep the secret that they did.

However, before anything got too awkward, Damon left the house and I literally let myself fall to shambles on the couch with my journal. Now, I had to think of a distraction.

Hmmm...

I wanted to throw away some cash.

* * *

"So you just decided today you were going to blow 30- something grand?"

"Yu_p_." I said, grinning over to Elena as she drove down the road. I sighed, looking down at the list of things needed.

"Where did you get the money for this anyways?" Elena asked, making me grin.

"Well I did tell you I'm only nineteen and I don't have an actual teaching degree yet right?" I asked, and she nodded. "Well I had to have an income somewhere to drop out of university, so I write stories instead." I said, going over the list in my head again.

"Wait, so you're an author?" Elena asked, and I nodded. "But I've never seen your name anywhere." She countered, but I smirked.

"Jenna was talking to me about her favorite book yesterday."

"Uh huh?"

"She asked if I ever read it."

"And?"

"I never did."

"Oh."

"I wrote it."

_"Oh."_ Was what came from her mouth, and then she smiled. "You're M. D. Lan?" Elena asked, and I nodded.

"My initials, and my best friend's nickname for me." I said, thinking back to Maria. Elena smiled at me, actually seeming excited.

"So I'm meeting the author of _Time's Rush_? Awesome!" She said, and we pulled into the Walmart parking lot. I rolled my eyes as we got out and started to walk in.

"Don't get too excited, my lips are sealed about the sequel!" I teased, Elena laughed. We hunted through the groceries, and I walked around for a few things to add to my wardrobe and room.

We barely fit it all in Jenna's vehicle.

"Ash! You spent over $2,000.00!" Elena exclaimed, but I just grinned as we pulled into the car dealership.

"And here goes the rest."

We drove in, I fell in love with a car, and Elena mocked me through the whole process of buying. When we walked out with the keys she laughed at me, staring at the car with humor.

"I can't believe you just dropped thirty grand and didn't freak out." She laughed, but I shrugged. I had been saving and hoarding money for years, right now I had enough money that I could retire anytime I wanted to.

"Race you to the boarding house?" I teased, but she shook her head and walked to her car as I turned to mine. It was about time I got a car, but I never liked the new modern looking ones. They were too cheap, too plastic to me, I liked the old soul ones. Which was why when my eyes landed on the 1973 Corvette Stingray Convertible, I fell in love. Let's not forget all the power underneath that canary yellow hood, or the slightly modern edge this one had.

Seriously, I always loved these cars.

Elena had barely pulled out of her spot when I came speeding past her, tires squealing as I rolled right out of the dealership without slowing down. What? There wasn't anybody around! I can do as I wish... sort of. I switched gears, taking off down the road and beating Elena by nearly ten minutes. I even stopped for gas!

"You took forever!" I said when she rolled up, looking haggard that I was waiting on her.

"You know those signs with numbers on them? That's the speed limit Ash, you're lucky nobody saw you!" She scolded, but I could tell she still found humor in it. I just shrugged, before helping her unload everything from her car. Once we had, we went inside to make a snack.

"So are you going to the dance tomorrow?" Elena asked, making me smirk.

"Oh most definitely, I'm ready to party man, you?" I asked, and she smiled.

"Yup."

"I told Jeremy if he wanted to be on my good side he'd serve punch tonight, think he can handle it?" I asked, Elena shrugged though, seemingly thinking about something else. Before I could say anything though, Damon and Stefan walked into the room.

"Whose car?" Damon asked, and I smirked.

"Sexy ain't she?" I teased, and he raised his brows at me.

"Never took you for the old fashioned type." He countered, smirking and stealing a piece of cheese Elena had put on a plate before walking around to the other side of the counter, sitting next to Stefan.

"Eh, I'm a sucker for muscles and deep growls." I joked, laughing a little as I turned to the fridge. When I turned back, Elena and Stefan were giving me weird looks. I chose to ignore it though. "You guys heading to the dance tomorrow?" I asked the boys, and they both shrugged.

"I don't know." Stefan said, but I rolled my eyes.

"Oh come on! What was the 50's like anyways? Was it like grandparents tell their kids? Well?" I challenged, scooting in between the two brothers and wrapping an arm around each of their shoulders. "Well boys?" I asked, but it was silent. Elena laughed, and I joined her before letting them go and I walked to steal a piece of cheese from her plate. Damon gave me a weird look, raising his eyebrow.

"Are you on glue?" He asked, but I just shrugged.

"Eh, had enough bourbon and kiwi to last me a season." I muttered, rubbing my belly. The gesture didn't go unnoticed though, and I saw Damon's eyes wander down, a very brief flicker of sadness covering his eyes. However before I could say anything, he looked back to me and grinned.

"Why don't we take your new car for a spin?" He teased, but I just grinned, holding the keys up in the air.

"Deal."

* * *

"No seriously Damon, I can handle it." I said, looking out into the open road. It was a long stretch to town, so we stopped. I wanted to see just how fast this baby could fly. It wasn't going to be as good as most modern cars, but I still knew this baby had a kick.

"You sure? One slip up and we'll hit a tree." He said as though talking to a child, but I just smirked.

"Trust me babes, this isn't my first try." I said, and then turned to the road. "Just tell me if I'm going to hit something, like- I dunno, Bambi." I said, and he snorted but otherwise didn't say anything as I revved the engine. I put my foot on the pedal, and we took off. I switched gears easily, casually, calmly. There wasn't a worry in my mind as we flew down the road, a wicked grin on my face.

This was living to me, this was what I always loved to do. Man did I miss it! We still had a stretch before we hit the town, so I just let the car fly, and we we going to fast things were blurring at my sides.

Five minutes.

It was just five minutes of pure adrenaline before we reached the town, but I enjoyed every second of it. When the sign showed we had reached the town though, I slowed down and went the speed limit, albeit a bit to crazily- hey I tried!

When I parked in the Mystic Grill lot, I was so giddy I gave a laugh.

"That was so much fun!" I grinned at Damon, and he gave me a look.

"You're pretty nuts behind the wheel." He said, sounding a little wary. I shrugged, and we both headed in and sat down at a table. We ordered food, and waited patiently. Damon was looking me up and down, looking curious as I smiled warmly.

"That was a nice drive, I should do that more often." I said, leaning back in my booth seat. Damon snorted, making me roll my eyes. "Maybe without you, Mister Downer." I teased, but he smirked.

"It's pretty sad if you can make someone like me feel nervous in a car Lani." He teased, but I just shrugged- so what if I was a bad driver? Bite me bitch.

Uh, unless you're a vampire... eh heh...

Damon was staring at me again, making me feel awkward. Thank god the waiter came and gave us our drinks. I gulped my soda down as quickly as I could.

"Are you alright Lani?" He asked, and if it wasn't for me remembering our conversation, I would've missed the deeper meaning.

I wanted to tell him, that no matter what he did I would never just forget- okay he could lock away my emotions, but I would always know, and I would never run from it. This was so frustrating though, because I knew. I knew I had just a huge weight on my heart, that I would always choose Damon, but yet it was buried so deep even I couldn't reach it.

What would he say anyways? Would he run?

That there, that was my biggest fear.

"I dunno," I said, looking down at the table. "I just- with Axel coming back and all. I feel, awkward." I said, managing to change the subject without actually telling a lie. I was afraid he would notice by my heartbeat, but apparently he wasn't going to say anything about it.

"What is Axel to you anyway?" He asked, like he were tip toeing on thin ice, but I just made a face and sighed. Instead I played with my straw, swirling the contents of my glass.

"When I was about fourteen, I was going through a very rough time in my life. I hit rock bottom," I said honestly, looking up at Damon. "I mean it. There was nothing I wasn't against, nothing! It got me in some really bad groups, and that's when I met Axel. He saved my sorry ass, and taught me that even when you think life's over, it's only just beginning." I said, watching Damon's brows knit together as he looked at me intently, tilting his head to the side.

"He-" I started, not sure what I wanted to say. "He was my..." I couldn't find the words though, and I just kept shaking my head- each word that came to mind wasn't good enough.

"Your what Lani?" Damon dared to ask, and then I settled on a word.

"My everything."

It was like I had just shot him, his face contorted and he looked really frustrated, but he nodded.

"Continue."

"Damon, it was so hard back then for me. I'm ashamed of myself, and for me to say that- it was pretty bad. I was pretty bad. When I met Axel, I found hope again. I made friends that didn't back stab me, I met my best friend. I went back to school, and I got good grades. I got in shape and played on the basketball team, and most of all, I met the most intriguing person in my life back then. Axel saved me from killing myself, metaphorically." I said, feeling my emotions flooding over as I allowed myself to think of him.

"So why?" Damon asked, sounding upset. "Why are you so angry at him?" He asked.

"Because he left me with nothing."

Damon tilted his head the other way then, and I frowned.

"When I came home one day, Axel asked me to move away with him. I had never been so attached to somebody, I instantly said yes, I would go. He told me to pack, and meet him in the train station." I shook my head though, remembering the day. "Turns out, Axel never felt the same way about me. He humiliated me, and left me there. I never saw his face again until today." I said, swallowing a huge gulp of soda afterwards.

"So let me get this straight," Damon began, his eyes narrowing. "You're having a meltdown at a vampire for running away from you because your blood was too delicious?" He asked as though he didn't believe me.

"You tasted my blood, and you're not running away for that reason." I countered, and he frowned.

"Most vampires don't have even half of my tolerance." He challenged, but I rolled my eyes.

"Ah, you? Patience? Same sentence? Funny." I snorted, but he smirked.

"I happen to have an unflinching ability to listen to Taylor Swift, if you do recall our trip to Mystic Falls." He purred, making me shrug. Our orders came then, and we began to eat in a comfortable silence.

"I think I need to cut down on the bourbon and scotch, my jeans are getting to tight." I muttered, looking down at my stomach and wincing. Damon smirked, leaning across the table and looking at me dead in the eye.

"Like anyone is going to notice." He teased, but I just snorted.

"By the way, are vampires stuck to forever look as they died? Or can you bulk up or lose muscle?" I asked, and he gave me a look.

"What do you mean?" He asked, taking a bit of his fries.

"I mean, say I became a vampire- just pretend Damon!" I added when he glared at me. "Would I look the exact same no matter what happened?" I asked, actually curious. Damon swallowed his food and shrugged.

"Just like our hair can grow, our muscles can wither away too. It wouldn't make a difference to your strength, but you can still look different." Damon said, and I nodded in understanding. "Now it would take a lot more to lose what you've got, and exercise for vampires is more of a distraction than anything." He muttered, and I rested my chin on the table, actually interested in what he had to say. Smiling, I watched him eat quietly for a moment, before my lips started to flap.

"Stefan told me about Madison."

He stopped what he was doing and looked up to me again, his brows seemed to be eternally stuck in the same spot.

"What did he say?" He asked quietly, very unlike Damon- this whole scene wasn't Damon. Was he guilty? Was he upset- no that was obvious. What he was upset at though was a bit confusing.

"He said you loved her, that you were going to marry and have a child." I said, not moving a single muscle as he stared at me. "And that he killed her."

"Why are you bringing this up?" He asked, but I just shrugged.

"We talked about my failed love life, your turn." I said, making him shrug. It seemed like he wanted to change the subject really badly, but then he looked at me and this overwhelming guilty look covered his features. I didn't like it, so I offered a small smile.

"What did you want to know?" He asked finally, so I sat up straighter.

"Why did you fall in love with her?" I asked, and he looked down at the table, before looking back at me.

"Because she loved me." He said, sounding so honest.

"Damon-"

"I'm serious," He insisted, his brows pulling together. "She loved me for who I was, and I fell for her." He said, still looking at me, making me smile.

"Wow, that's pretty deep for so few words." I said with a grin, he gave a weak smile, shrugging it off. As much as I wanted to push the subject, I knew it was a bad idea. Instead, I let him finish his food while I plucked a few fries from my dish. He looked over suddenly, his brows furrowed.

"I'll be right back." He said, and I just nodded before finishing my meal. When I looked up, another person was sitting where Damon had been, making me frown.

"Axel," I said lowly, not the least bit happy to see him and his grinning face. "I thought I made it clear I didn't want you here." I spat, but he just shrugged.

"If you were smart, you'd leave town with me right now." He said, making me frown.

"Why would I even consider that?" I demanded, frustration ebbing at my mind again. God he got on my nerves so fast!

"Because I did find a lead on your father." He said, making me freeze.

What?

"You asked me to look into your family history the last time we spoke, and I figured the best way to apologize was to look into who your father could be." He said, looking quite honest. I frowned, shaking my head- I didn't understand. Axel kept his promise?

"Oh, it's you again." Damon said as he came over. He grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the booth gently, but I didn't argue, a frown on my face though.

"Ashi," Axel began as we were walking away. I looked over my shoulder at him, and his sharp eyes caught mine. "I'm not lying."

"Let's go." Damon said, holding my hand still even as we made our way out of the Grill. Even as we got into the car, even as I backed out and we made our way home, I was talking to myself.

"What the fuck? Seriously? Pull bullshit like that out of your ass? I don't care if you're honest, I'm not fucking leaving you bastard." I growled, Damon giving me looks as I swiftly switched the gears and gave her down the backstretch through the woods.

"Easy Speedy." Damon teased, but I shook my head.

"What kind of BS was that? 'I found your father.' Like I wanna know now. I mean if they didn't give a damn about me until now, why the Hell should I go looking for them?"

"It's natural to want to know Lani," Damon pointed out. "Besides, maybe they could be an alien race. Judging form you, that's not that far fetch of an idea."

"Haha." I said flatly, rolling my eyes. "I just wish I knew why he chose now. He wants me out of town. Damon I'm worried- why would he want me out of here suddenly? What's going on?" I asked, but Damon shook his head.

"If you want my honest opinion," He began, making me glance at him. He was looking at me with a very relaxed look on his face, eyebrows raised a little bit. "I think he just wants to get into your pants."

"So long as it's not my mind." I muttered. "Trust me, I'm going to wear a chastity belt after tonight." I said sharply, but Damon chuckled.

"That's my girl." He teased, but I rolled my eyes.

"I'm not five Damon, but seriously. I'm worried for you and-and everybody else. What's coming?" I asked, but Damon just shrugged.

"Who knows Red, but until it comes why don't we enjoy life while it lasts?" He countered as we pulled up to the boarding house. Stefan and Elena were both out, so I figured having a little... fun would be a good idea.

We went in, downed a few shots, then I turned on the stereo system and slid around the floor, swinging my hips to the country song. Damon gave me a funny look as I undid a few buttons to my shirt.

"You said you had an unflinching ability to listen to Taylor Swift." I challenged, but he just rolled his eyes and smirked at me.

"Only for you babe." He said, twirling me around. The song ended, and I grinned, swinging my ass a bit quicker to the song.

"Pontoon!" I sung, though it sounded terrible. Damon laughed at me, before spinning me around and putting a hand on my hip. He reached into my back pocket for the remote, and switched the song.

"You've been wallowing in country music for too long baby." He teased, and I rolled my eyes when _Sexyback_ played. I didn't say anything though, and found one of his legs between mine. It was a lot like the first night we had danced, and I smirked as the space between our bodies became less and less.

The amount Damon was drinking became more and more though. Yet as the music pounded, I didn't care. I didn't care that Damon was drunk and clinging to my body, I didn't care that Axel's talk was nagging me. I didn't even care if someone died right then.

Right now, it was just me and Damon. As our bodies meshed closer together, as my lips trailed to just half an inch from his, I knew, there was no way I could ever forget what Damon made me feel. He could lock it up a thousand times, but in just a short day, I knew.

I'd just fallen for him again.

It felt so right to be there, to feel his arms around me, the empty scotch bottle on the floor out of my view. Those bold blue eyes staring at me with such intensity.

He moved forward to close the gap-

A crashing sound made us both break apart then. The music died, along with the lights. Damon pulled me to his chest then, and I tried to wrap my mind around what was going on.

"Don't... move..." Damon whispered so quietly I almost didn't hear him. He suddenly moved, but was thrown back and landed right on me. I groaned when I smacked my head against the floor, wincing.

"What the hell...?" Damon groaned, getting off of me. He offered me his hand- barely a silhouette in the darkness, but I went to grab at it. He suddenly went flying into the bookshelf though, and I winced at the sound of multiple books crashing.

A figure was suddenly before me, and my heart felt like it stopped for a second as I turned to look up at them-

Oh.

Everything suddenly slowed down, and I wasn't so afraid anymore as I stared up into her face. She looked angry, but I wasn't amused.

"You could choose a more subtle entrance...?" I offered, but she glared at me while I stood up. the lights flickered back on, and she stood there shaking her head at me.

"Who the hell is she?" Damon asked, wincing a bit as he looked at her. I rolled my eyes at her disapproving looks, then turned to look at Damon.

"Damon, meet Bella. My witchy Foster Mother." I said, but then frowned when I noticed Damon wasn't moving at all. Turning back to Bella, I noticed she was acting strange.

"Bella?" I asked, but she just continued to glare straight at Damon with such concentration.

"First my sister and now my daughter. You have to die."

"Bella- no!" I shouted, just as I heard Damon give a cry.

Oh fuck.

This was not good.

* * *

**Whew! Next chapter! Okay, so I'm going to try and still incorporate the main story line, since it is technically supposed to be the trio's story, but this is still going to focus on Lani! I think I went a little all over the place with this chapter, but I suck at awkward writings, you know making the two get back into sync? Yeah I suck. Oh well!  
**

**I'm actually enjoying your guys' inner turmoil with what Lani is. I mean I know, and I know how her and Madi are connected. I mean I think I even said so in one of the chapters... huh... Well I had been humming and hawing on what she was for a long time, at first it was going to be really cheesy, and then really complex, so I tried to simplify it as much as I could. You won't realllllyyyyy know until the sequel is out though!  
**

**So... I figured what... eight more chapters? Then on to the next one? It does have to be put into two different books, simply because of a very IMPORTANT event that is going to happen. Can anybody guess what that important event will be?  
**

**Oh yeah, I've given you guys quite a bit to snack on with this note too, so i expect a lot of reviews! It's my birthday soon, so I would really really love it if I could get it for that! Ten reviews? Can y'all do it this time? Pretty please? I put up to effin long chapters in one day!  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: What big event do you think I'm talking about? What is an option for what Lani is that you guys don't want?  
**


	21. The Trembling Foundation We Built

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'Syndicate' -The Fray  
_

_**Chapter** 21  
_

_"The Trembling Foundation We Built"_

* * *

"Bella!" I shouted, smacking her across the face when Damon let out a shout.

She stood there, stunned, and I looked over to find Damon rubbing his head but over all he looked fine now. I let out a breath I forgot I had been holding and turned to look at Bella.

"Why did you-"

She slapped me.

"Ow-"

She smacked me again.

"Just had to make sure you still had a brain." She said, smirking at me, but I just rolled my eyes and glared.

"So what, you were planning to kill my friend to prove...?"

"That you still have devotion for him. Otherwise I might've just killed him." She said with a shrug as though it weren't a big deal.

"You hurt him."

"He's a homicidal vampire, he could handle it."

I went to open my mouth to retort, but nothing came out. She actually had a point there, I couldn't really see Damon as being that hurt in the first place anyways. Looking over, I saw Damon giving me and Bella an incredulous look.

"You two, belong in a psychiatric ward." He said sharply, but I just walked over to him and frowned.

"Are you okay?" I asked, holding his face in my hands, looking for damage as I turned it side to side. He slapped my hands away and I made a whining noise before crossing my arms.

"I'm fine." He said, looking over to glare at Bella. "So why're you here? Ol-"

"Ah!" I shouted, covering his mouth and looking at him with wide eyes. "We do not use that word! Or the word I think that was going to follow it!"

He pushed me away gently, glancing at me before glaring at Bella again. I just shook my head, hoping he wouldn't take things the wrong way.

"I am here to check up on my daughter, but I can see she is definitely not out of harms way if you're still here." Bella said sharply, and I looked to the ceiling, praying for patience.

"Really Bella? That's your calm and kind speech?" I asked incredulously.

This was not going to go very well.

"I don't know if you noticed, Judgey, but I've managed to keep her alive and more or less sane. What have you done?" Damon challenged, and I could feel his hand on my back pulling me towards him.

"She is not yours to protect Damon." Bella said, but I frowned when she glared at me. "Why didn't you leave with Axel?" She asked, and my eyes widened.

"I knew it! You sent him here!" I said, pulling form Damon's grasp to walk over to her. "So what? You just wanted my Ex asshole vampire boyfriend to sweep me away to Never Never Land where we could have a civil life and no alcohol?" I asked, to which she shrugged.

"That was the idea, you weren't supposed to fall for him though." She said, nodding over to Damon who was behind me. I could feel his eyes burning holes into my back, and I frowned.

"Okay, let me make this very clear," I said, walking up to her and putting my hands on her shoulders, looking her dead in the eye. I needed to make this look real, or Damon would know. "Damon is my friend, and I love him _like a friend_. I will never leave Mystic Falls with Axel. I refuse to listen to you anymore either Bella." I said firmly.

"Ashi-"

"No Bella!" I said, throwing my hands down to my sides. "I refuse to leave Mystic Falls, and whatever you want me away from- too bad. It can come and it better be ready, because I'm staying to fight. And I refuse to ruin away and leave my friends."

She looked at me with raised brows, then over to Damon.

"Is she high?"

Fuck my life.

* * *

"So let me get this straight," I began as we drove in the car to Elena's. "You're actually going to come to this dance with me?" I asked, getting excited. We took Damon's car over to the Gilbert property, apparently Elena had been attacked, a vampire had been invited into the house.

"Well I guess I could, but I'm going to need you to do me a little favor." Damon said, and I raised a brow.

"Go on." I insisted.

"If a vampire has been invited into Elena's home, he's probably going to keep stalking her. We have to eradicate him before he hurts anybody else. So tonight at the dance, I want you to be extra wary of everybody. Don't go anywhere by yourself, and please for the love of god don't play the hero, you got it?" He said as we pulled up to Elena's house. I nodded, understanding what he was saying. Looked over to me and smirked.

"Good, now let's go see how much of a meltdown my baby brother is having." He said with a smirk. I rolled my eyes and shook my head, not liking where this was going at all.

"You just want me out of the Board House and away from Bella." I teased as we walked to the front door. Damon shrugged.

"She's... scary." He said, still smirking. Last night's events hadn't settled very well, and I was just thankful nobody had died. Bella insisted on staying, and before I could even ask she had situated herself in my room, insisting I sleep _right next to her_. Or in human words 'Don't you fucking dare sneak off and sleep in Damon's bed!'...

But...his bed was so comfy...

Screw the company, I wanted his mattress!

Damon knocked on the door, and Stefan let us in then. I gave him a weak smile, and we walked into the house. My orbs landed on Elena, she looked tense and upset. Sitting down next to her, she looked up to me and forced a smile.

"How'd he get in anyway?" Damon asked, but Elena looked to the floor.

"He posed as a pizza delivery guy and I guess Jeremy or Jenna asked him to wait inside." Elena said, and I patted her back.

"He gets points for that." Damon said, pacing around the room. "Did he say what he wanted?"

"No, he was too busy trying to kill me." Elena said through gritted teeth. I bit my tongue, preventing me from saying anything as Stefan looked up to Damon.

"You're sure you don't know who it is?" Stefan asked, a sharp undertone in his words. Damon glared back at his younger brother, rolling his eyes.

"Oh don't look at me and get all judgey. I told you we had company." Damon said, looking over to me. "And you, do you think you're up for this?"

"Of course, but how many are there?" I asked, but Damon shrugged.

"We don't know." Stefan said, making me roll my eyes.

"Well then, I've got a way to expose quite a few." I said, making all three look at me. Then Damon's eyes widened and he shook his head.

"No way in hell." He said quickly, but Elena frowned at me.

"What's he talking about Ash?" She asked, but before I could explain Damon started to talk.

"Miss Martyr here is planning on spilling some of her blood. No doubt at least half the vampires here would fall for the smell and come running." Damon said in a sarcastic tone. "Great plan." He spat, but I rolled my eyes.

"You said it yourself Damon, my blood is exceptionally good. If we can get the vampire who has been invited in to come out of the woodwork isn't that better than guessing?" I asked, but Elena and Stefan seemed hung up on one fact.

"Wait, when did Damon drink your blood?" Elena began, then glared at Damon. "Did you compel her?!" She asked, looking mortified.

"Damon." Stefan warned.

"Get over it!"

Damon and I looked at each other- did we just say that at the same time? He shook his head and glared at me.

"Don't make me send you back to Mama Witch, because I know she'll lock you in the basement for the night." He said, but I shook my head.

"He's been invited in. So either all of us stay here, or all of us go to the boarding house. Let's not forget Jenna and Jeremy. What will you do about them?" I challenged, Damon rubbing his face.

"Fine!" He said, then looked over to Elena. "What about you? Think you can act normal at the dance?" He asked, Elena just nodded.

"Great, give me a stake and we can-" I said standing up, but Stefan actually stopped me.

"You and Elena should stick together, let Damon and I handle to vampires." He insisted, and I rolled my eyes as I walked with Elena to her car. Once we were in, I whispered quietly to her.

"Y'know, sometimes I wish chivalry _was_ dead."

"I agree."

* * *

When we got to the dance, it was already underway. I was supposed to chaperone, but I had a feeling Jenna and Ric were doing just fine. Not to mention Damon would not let me go anywhere.

I glanced at Elena, she seemed to have the same issues with Stefan, and we both nodded in silent agreement at the unsaid statement.

Yup, they were over protective alright.

Still, I found my eyes looking around the crowd, trying to find someone who at least stood out a little bit. Nobody did, so I figured if Damon and Stefan couldn't find him, I wouldn't be able to. Damon leaned down to talk in my ear over the loud music.

"You and Elena go get a drink, don't separate though." He added with a warning tone. I rolled my eyes.

"Yes Daddy." I said in a sweetheart tone, making him give me a look, but I walked over to Elena. Stefan seemed to have said the same thing to her- okay in a nicer tone- so she forced a smile at me and we both went to grab a drink.

"How are you?" I asked, Elena shrugged.

"Should I lie and say I'm fine or tell the truth and say I'm scared?" She asked with a humorless laugh. My own lips pulled into a sad smile.

"It's okay to be scared Elena, to tell you the truth I'm a bit worried too." I said, but we dropped the conversation as Caroline and Bonnie made their way over to us. I felt a little out of place- being the only one not dressed up at all. I hadn't had time- I barely managed to curl my hair before Damon threw a shirt and jeans at me before dragging me out the door.

"Hey," Bonnie said to us, smiling. We both forced a smile back, but then Bonnie narrowed her eyes behind us.

"What's Damon doing here?" She asked sharply, and I knew this wasn't going to be good.

"Easy girls, he's just here to help... chaperone." I said, shrugging it off when they glared at me.

"So what? Is this whole threesome going on with the Salvatore brothers?" Caroline asked as she turned to Elena, making me furrow my brow.

"What?" Elena asked as all three of us looked at her. "What are you talking about Caroline?" She asked, Bonnie and me looking to Caroline now. She laughed without any humor and raised her brows.

"Oh come on, he's been trailing after you like a lost puppy." Caroline teased, and I pretended not to feel a stab in my chest when Elena looked at me.

"You sure?" I asked, and I just knew I'd regret what came next, I usually did. "I think it's you who's chasing after him Caroline. Jealous much?" I challenged, my anger flailing.

I really needed to stop hanging with Damon so much, his attitude was rubbing off on me. Caroline looked at me with a frown, her eyes a little wider as she looked down at the table. Elena and Bonnie were both giving me looks, but I just rolled my eyes.

"Why are you defending him?" Bonnie asked, and I wanted to say the truth- that I wanted Damon, that he was mine and Caroline could go drop in a hole with her thoughts- but I couldn't, so I shook my head.

"I'm not- look. Just... deal with him, I can, why can't you?" I asked, and Bonnie raised a brow as though it were obvious.

Well excuse me, next time I'll let Damon bite your head off.

Bitch.

"Ash is right," Elena added, the two other girls looking at her as I looked at the table. "I mean it's not like we can kill him."

"I'd be in on that." Bonnie said, clinking cups with Caroline. I sighed, shaking my head.

Teenagers.

The night was getting kind of boring, listening to Bonnie and Caroline talk about different boys and how hot they were got on my nerves pretty fast. So when I caught sight of Damon through the crowd I decided to put myself out of my misery and went to talk with him.

"Where are you going?" Bonnie asked, following me a little bit. She glanced to Damon then, so I knew she knew.

"To talk with my friend, where else?" I asked, raising a brow when she opened her mouth.

"You do remember what Damon did to you, right?" She asked, making me frown.

"I'm not sure if you're aware, Bonnie, but I really don't care what you or anybody else thinks about Damon. He's my friend, build a bridge and get over it." I said, and she let me go. When I reached Damon, he was smirking, so I leaned against the table he was at.

"Pretty bold speech." He teased, and I rolled my eyes.

"I think it deserves a dance in exchange." I said, and he looked down at me with raised brows. I gestured to the dance floor, and he sighed before holding his arm out for me. It was mostly couples dancing in pairs right now, nothing like the clubs I had been to with Damon. Yet it was alright as my hands went onto his shoulders and his on my waist. I smiled as we swayed back and forth.

"Couldn't handle teen drama anymore?" He asked, smirking.

"Nope, being with Caroline reminds me of why I hated high school." I said, getting a little closer. His eyes were looking around the room, still searching for the predator. "Do you think he'll show tonight?" I asked, making his eyes snap down to me.

"Probably, it's the best place to snatch her." He said, and I frowned.

"Why don't you let me lure him out?" I asked, my brow furrowing. His eyes were so intense again, this strained look on his face.

"Because then they might hurt you." He said finally, the song becoming even slower. I pulled myself to him, and he wrapped his arms around me, and as I rested my head on his chest he rested his on mine. It was then that I noticed quite a few girls looking at us.

Looking at Damon.

Ah.

What would not in love me do? Hmm, I really don't want to answer that but...

"Ah, lookey here, a blonde lady this way comes." I teased, and Damon looked over to the girl.

"I can do better." He said, shrugging.

"I dunno Damon, I mean she's really pretty." I teased, actually she might be prettier than Caroline...

Fuck.

I pushed away, and Damon gave me a look.

"I'm going to go get some punch, and if you're not here when I get back I will totally understand." Despite the fact that I said this, I could feel his eyes burning holes into my back the whole walk to the bar.

When I turned around though, I saw Blondie flirting with him.

Way to go Lani, way to fucking take one for the team.

Double fuck.

"Hey Ash," Jeremy said, catching my attention as I turned to grin at him. "Want something to drink?" He offered, and I nodded. Looking around, i noticed quite a few people were dancing and...

Damon was dancing with two girls now.

"So," I said, turning back to Jeremy then. "How goes the punch serving?" I asked, Jeremy just shrugged.

"Kind of boring, but I mean, it was nice of you to trade off for me." He said with a smile, I just grinned in response. The kid was good, I think he just needed a little bit of leeway. So I figured giving him something to do would be better than him up in his room panicking to do some dumb assignment.

"No problem." I said, and just then a girl came through the crowd with a stack of cups.

"Okay, this was all I could-" Her eyes stopped on me then. "Carry..."

"You didn't have to do that." Jeremy said with a smile, but she just smiled back before looking at me. I read it as 'I want to talk with him', and suddenly pointed to the exit.

"I have to use the washroom, talk to you later?" I asked, Jeremy nodded.

"Thanks Ash."

When I walked out the exit- sparing a glance to the dance floor to find a group of girls dancing with Damon- I was shoved against the wall once it shut.

That little girl looked up at me, glaring sharply as she looked me up and down. I bit back a scream, watching as she frowned.

"You're human..." She said as though it was a surprise. I quirked my brow, confused as to what she meant. Of course I was human, what else would I possibly be?

"Yeah, uh, who are you?" I asked, and she gave me a sharp look.

"Forget this happened." She said, her pupils dilating, but I frowned and shook my head.

"Nice try chick." I said, and she jumped back a bit, growling. "Vampire huh? Tell me who did you think I was?" I challenged, and she seemed to be studying me.

"Who are you?" She demanded, but I ignored her.

"Was it Madison?" I offered, and she seemed a little surprised. "Are you involved with the vampire that attacked Elena?" I said, reaching for the short stake shoved in my pants pocket, hidden under my leather jacket.

"You're pretty smart, for a human." She said, but before I could say anything else her eyes snapped to down the hallway. That's when I saw the guy, standing there, stock still. I didn't like the odds anymore, and actually started to sweat a little.

"Can I kill her?" He asked, looking at the girl. My neck cracked from how fast it turned. My orbs bore into hers, and I dared the small Asian to attack me. She seemed to weigh her odds out in her mind, but then spoke.

"You must be close to the Salvatore brothers if you know about your double." She said, then turned to the guy. "Grab her."

I gave the girl an aneurism when she lunged for me, and she fell to the floor unconscious, the guy turning to chase me but I pulled the stake and stabbed him in the stomach. When I pulled it out and tried to stab him again though, he caught my arm. My eyes widened as he gave this wicked smirk, before I felt the pressure on my arm.

"No-no-"

**_SNAP_**

My eyes widened and I had to bite my tongue to keep from screaming.

He just snapped it- like a- like a twig!

I tried to focus, but the closest to focusing I got was one thing.

To try and survive.

Glaring, I gave him an aneurism, but just one, and he let go. I used that opportunity to turn tail and run. The door to the dance wouldn't open though, so I turned down another hall and ran like the devil himself was chasing me. My lungs hurt and my wrist was throbbing, but I didn't stop even when my body begged me to. I could feel blood gushing from my nose- probably from using my ring too much- but I didn't care.

I had to get out of there.

There had to be an exit, I didn't care if people saw me running, I just needed an-

A door.

I ran to it, but my heart sunk when I saw the chains on it. My feet kept pushing to go past it, but I did a sliding stop when I saw someone banging on the door.

Elena?

She looked at me, but then spun around. The guy was behind her, and my heart started to beat even more wildly. She ran into another door, the guy following her. Without really thinking, I ran at the door, and leaped at the glass. It gave way and I crashed to the floor on the other side, writhing for a moment because I landed on my bad left wrist. It was only when I heard Elena scream that I got back up and ran into the room Elena had prior.

She was there, and the vampire was just feet from her. He tossed a long piece of wood, looked like it belonged to a mop, and it came right at me. I caught it mid run and came up behind him. Elena screamed as he went to bite her, but I stabbed the wood through his back first.

He let out a groan, and fell over, Elena backing away.

"You missed." He said, and I yanked the wood out and covered Elena. We were backing towards the doors, the man glaring at me sharply.

"You're the reason Katherine's dead." He growled. "Madison." He said sharply. I didn't bothered correcting him, nor did either of us have the time as he ran at me. I went to stab him in the chest, but he was thrown aside suddenly.

Both Elena and I jumped when Stefan appeared, the man looking at him.

"Hey!" All of us turned to look at Damon who was standing by the door, holding his hands up in surrender. "Nobody wants to kill you, we just want to talk." He said, to which I snorted.

"Speak for yourself." I growled, glaring at him. He turned to me, his veins going wild on his face as his fangs elongated. He lunged, and had Stefan not grabbed the piece of wood from my hand I would've missed him completely as Stefan stabbed him in the gut. The guy groaned, falling to his knees right in front of me.

"Why are you doing this?" Stefan asked, and the guy looked up to him as Damon walked over.

"Because she looks like Katherine," He said, then turned to look at me. "I didn't think Madison was still alive though." He said, and I rolled my eyes before kneeling down to look him dead in the eye.

"I'm not Madison_." _I said, feeling like a tape recorder. Damon leaned down next to me, and I glanced at him while he glared at the guy.

"You knew them?" He asked, looking confused. The guy smirked, finding something funny.

"You thought you were the only ones with Katherine? You don't even remember me." He said.

"How do you get into the tomb?" I asked, Damon looking at me. He didn't answer, so Stefan shoved it deeper into his gut.

"The grimoire! Read Jonathan Gilbert's journal!" He said, coughing and groaning. Stefan and Damon exchanged looks as I stood up.

"Who are you working with?" Stefan asked, but the guy just shook his head. Damon made a motion towards him with his hands, and Stefan pulled the makeshift stake out and stabbed him in the heart.

"W-Wait!" Elena said as the guy dropped to the ground, turned grey. "Wh-Why would you do that?" She asked, seemingly panicked. I walked up to him and looked down.

"He had to die." Damon said, but Elena wouldn't listen.

"But he-he-he-"

"Elena," Stefan said in a softer tone. "He was invited in." He said. I looked down at the deceased vampire, and crouched a bit. So he had known Madison too? What sort of tales hadn't been told yet? I wondered what part of the story was I missing, how did he know Madison?

There was a noise outside, and we all looked up. I could see Ric's jacket as he walked away, Damon marching out the door after him.

"Are you okay?" Elena said, and I looked up to see her trembling a bit. The pain in my wrist was shooting up my arm, and it hurt like crazy, but nothing nearly as bad as that attack. It wasn't like I was dying- that slow motion suicide that I couldn't escape from.

This pain, I could live with.

"Meh, I've been better, and worse." I said, forcing a small smile. "You?" I asked, but she shook her head, fighting back tears.

"I don't know."

* * *

"You look tired." I said as I walked into his room. Damon raised a brow, looking at my tank top and shorts. My pajamas.

"Isn't Mother Witch going to start yelling at you?" He challenged, but I just rolled my eyes.

"Please, after a bottle of whiskey she's lucky if she remembers my name at all." I said with a small chuckle before lying on his bed. A wince broke out across my face as I gave a small gasp. Damon, who was lying next to me, looked over with a furrowed brow.

"What happened to your arm?" He asked, looking down at the immensely swollen arm that was wrapped.

"That asshole snapped it when he was chasing me, then he chase Elena." I muttered, looking down at it. Damon surprised me by lifting his wrist to his mouth and biting onto it. I winced at the sound of his flesh tearing, but when he held the bleeding limb to my face I looked at him with surprise.

"Drink, it'll help." He said as I skeptically grabbed his wrist with my one good hand. I gave a small like, experimenting the strange taste. It tasted good, so I began to softly suck on the blood. It dripped from his body, and continued to fall into my mouth. When the blood started to slow, I instinctively bit down. A soft groan escaped Damon's lips, and I instantly drew back and looked at him.

"I'm sorry, did I hurt you?" I asked, but he was looking at me with that intense gaze of his. Those insanely blue eyes trapping me as they locked on my own steel orbs. He gave a small smirk, leaning closer to me.

"That's funny, a human asking a vampire if they hurt them." He teased, but I couldn't smile at how close he was.

"I'm a special human." I whispered, because I was afraid to break the spell around us.

"You sure are." He said with a smirk, before pulling away to grab my broken wrist. I gasped, about to yell at him, but then I realized that it didn't hurt. Gently, he unwrapped the bandage from my arm, and I looked down at it with surprise.

"Amazing." I said, flexing my arm and finding it felt even better than new. Looking up to him, I noticed a certain mirth at my fascination in his eyes. For a moment, I wanted to just say thank you, but I felt he needed a little more than that.

"Thank you Damon," I said, before turning over to straddle him. He looked up with a quirked brow, and I smirked. "Your turn." I said with a smile, but he frowned- much to my surprise.

"I don't think that's a good idea Lani." He said, but I shrugged.

"Most of mine aren't, but I trust you." I said, and he sat up, looking me in the eye still. I pulled my shirt over my head, and he gave me a look. "You are not getting this dirty, it's Kings of Leon!" I teased, trying to ignore the feeling of his hands on the bare skin of my back.

"You're pretty crazy Lani." He said, leaning in to smell my skin. He threw himself back suddenly, the veins on his face going wild as his fangs extended. I couldn't help it, I had to touch his face, so I did, my thumbs brushing over his fangs.

"Duh, I trust you, that's crazy in it's own category." I said, and he leaned in again, his teeth running over my skin. My body relaxed in his arms as he supported me, and there was a very acute pain suddenly. After that it wasn't so painful, but strange. No matter how many times he'd bitten me, it never felt the same.

I sighed, leaning my body against his as he drank my blood. The sounds of him sucking made my heart beat a little faster, blood rushing to my face. Would it be bad to say it felt so good?

He pulled away a little bit later, bit his wrist, and held it to my mouth.

"You better drink." He said, and I did while he returned to my neck.

A moment later, we both pulled away, and I looked at that blood on his lips, and my mind raced before I could think. I leaned forward and licked them, licked his face clean. He leaned forward and took long strokes with his tongue over my neck, and I reached up when he pulled back. There was no wound, nothing to prove I had been bitten at all.

"Lani." Damon said, our foreheads touching. He looked down, then back up to me, I doing the same to his lips and then eyes. There was no doubt in my mind- I wanted to kiss him, I wanted to do more than that- but I knew the moment I did Damon would either reject me or compel me to forget. Yet I wanted to know what he felt, where he stood in all this.

Why did he have to play the hero now?

I'd much prefer the asshole who didn't care.

Fuck.

"I'm tired." I said finally, and Damon smirked at me.

"If you got tired from that, I wonder how you would react to more... strenuous exercises." He teased, but I felt the blood rushing to my face. A small smirk appeared on my face, and I leaned in to kiss his cheek.

"You're such a jerk sometimes," I said, but then continued to kiss his cheek, and then his jaw. "But you can be sweet too. I like it, all of it." I said, kissing around his ear lobe as I whispered. When I pulled back though, Damon had that same pained expression though. I had to change his mind before he tried to compel me again. So I grabbed his hand and put it on my chest, over my heart.

"Damon," I said firmly, yet softly, our foreheads touching again. His eyes wandered around for a second, before they locked onto mine. "I know it will always be Katherine, I know that you love Madison, but you have to realize, no matter what happens, no matter how much you hurt me, I will always chose you." I said firmly.

"Lani-"

"Shhh," I said, kissing his cheek again. "No matter what you choose us to be, I will always be your friend. No matter how much we fight, no matter what we might say, I will always have your back. I just want you to know, that even if you choose Katherine, Madison, Elena..." I trailed off, and he practically drowned me in those deep blue orbs. "I will always be there, because you are my important person."

"You have an awful taste in men." He said, kissing my forehead, and then he pulled me down on to him. I hugged him, playing with the hairs at the nape of his neck.

"But see Damon, that's your problem," I said, pulling away and frowning at him. "You talk like you're the most horrid person in the world, but you're not. There are probably things I would hate to know you did, and there are probably sides to you I may not have seen yet. But whatever comes my way, I want to know it. I want to know you, who you are, what makes you tick. We've all done stupid Damon, it's whether we let those things define us that counts." I said. He just sat there for a moment, and I felt a bit embarrassed. Sitting back on his thighs, I felt the blood rush to my face.

"Ah look at me, sorry, going all deep again on you. Bar talk all over again, huh?" I asked, but he didn't say anything, or move. "Sorry, I got a little too deep there, huh?"

"I can't." Damon said, making me frown. "I can't chose Lani, it could never be you."

I tried to pretend my heart didn't sink to the pit of hell then. Instead, I nodded, before getting off of him.

"I get it, really. But I still stand in the same place Damon." I said, and he gave me that upset look back before I walked out of the room. There was no doubt in my mind, it was just a game to him now. Yet I couldn't hate him, but part of me wanted to make him feel pain.

Do you feel guilty Damon, for dragging me in?

Good.

You deserve it.

* * *

**Ugh, you have no idea how hard it's becoming to keep Damon in character.  
**

**At least, I hope he is, is he? I'm trying guys, but if Damon isn't and he's OOC, PLEASE let me know! I think we need a bit more bite back into their relationship now, don't you? We've got Damon having second thoughts... but what about Lani? Don't think she's going to wait around forever!  
**

**So some of you are set on Lani being Madi's reincarnate, huh? Well that's one idea I suppose, but why that? Any logic behind it?  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: What do you think Damon's thinking everytime he rejects her? If you were Lani, what would you do?  
**


	22. The Day We Let Go

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** 'Let Me Go' -3 Doors Down  
_

_**Chapter** 22  
_

_"The Day We Let Go"_

* * *

_Opinions. _

_People are forever telling you theirs, and then they ask for yours. _

_Are they actually trying to figure something out? Or perhaps they are looking for something else in your words. The truth is, when someone asks you something, they really don't want to hear the answer. Not even if it matches theirs, because we want to feel different. We want to pretend we are the only persons alive with this opinion, and that nobody else can understand it. _

_Yet at the same time, we want people to answer the same thing. We want to be part of the crowd, blend in when we feel nervous. It's natural, there's strength in numbers, animals use this advantage too. Sometimes I wonder, which one is better? If we all had different opinions, there would be no way to get along. What if we all thought the same? Less arguments, but is that really true? If we thought it was right to kill, that color of one's skin is more valuable than the soul within? Is that actually right? Some might say so, but others disagree. _

_I think that in life, we meet people that could alter our views- show us a new side to the world we may not know to be there- they can change who we are, and teach us everything we did not know and think we had to learn. Ultimately, I don't believe it really is our choice on our views, but it is our choice what we expose ourselves to. _

_We cannot know everything, we cannot see everything, but what we can do is open our minds so see the broad horizon, not just what's in front of us. Life it exciting because we find people who make us think, they challenge our beliefs and make us back them up. It is the people who open their ears to other's beliefs that I admire. Regardless of their own, they can hear another's point of view on a subject and mold it into their own. _

_That is the value of opinions. _

_Had I wrote this earlier today, I may have stopped there, but today was something different. I didn't expect what happened, and I never wanted it to happen. Turns out you can have opinions on people too, strong ones. My opinions in life were always changing, especially when I met Damon. I thought that, if I had enough time, I could make him love me. I thought that, if I acted the right way, if I could get his attention away from his past, he could love me too. _

_Turns out, his opinions will never change. _

_If I had to choose something to hate about him, that would be it. Just because I accept it, doesn't mean I like it, and that's what kills me most of all. Because for Damon, I would've done anything to make him love me. I didn't care what he did/does. _

_Now? _

_I'm not so sure anymore._

* * *

"You don't seem like the type to cook."

I shrugged, grinning to Jenna who was sitting on the counter as I stirred the sauce.

"I was the eldest that wasn't a good for nothing, so I had to cook a lot." I said, walking over to the island where Damon was cutting up tomatoes. Taking one, I watched him give me a look but I just rolled my eyes and stole my glass of wine too.

"You were telling me about that last time, you never knew your parents at all?" Jenna asked, and I shook my head as I jumped up on the counter next to her, sipping my wine.

"My earliest memory was being held by Bella, my Motherly figure. She worked at the orphanage for years, and when she left she took me too. Most of the kids were trouble, either too far gone or too young to be of use, so I tried to help as much as I could." I said, swallowing the rest of the wine.

"How noble of you." Damon teased, I just sneered.

"So tell me about your wild years Jenna, I'd love to see you top mine." I said, turning to her with a smirk. Jenna laughed, and shook her head.

"Oh there wasn't much out of getting high and dating a lot of guys." She laughed, and I raised my brows. "I have no secrets! Just... dirty shame." She added, making me laugh.

"My father never approved of anybody I dated," Damon said, and I raised a brow. "It just made me want them more." He said with his classic flirty smirk at Jenna. I rolled my eyes.

"Bella was the same, she would give countless reasons why I couldn't date somebody, most of them were out of whack and probably lies though, she was kind of nuts." I said with a nod, but then corrected myself. "Still is actually..." Jenna laughed at me, clinking glasses with me.

"What sort of reasons were those?" Damon asked as he walked over to us with a bottle of wine. He filled our glasses, smirking at me.

"Oh you know, this guy is a psychopathic killer, he just wants you as a trophy wife, your blood types don't match. Honestly, I think she was drunk most of my life." I said, taking a swig of wine. "Bets guy I ever dated, she said he was a werewolf." I laughed, Jenna raising her brows.

"Remind me never to speak to this Bella." She said with a laugh. "Who was that guy anyways?"

"Uhhhh Mason... I can't remember his last name, I think he used to live here, I knew it was Virginia." I said, trying to think, but Jenna snapped her fingers getting my attention.

"You dated Mason Lockwood?" She asked, looking surprised, and I gave a look of agreement.

"Lockwood! That's why the name sounded so familiar. Yeah we had a summer fling. It was kind of awkward though, being so different in ages and all." I muttered, remembering the days we spent on the beaches. I had been lying about my age, called myself twenty one when I was only seventeen. Apparently my looks were ahead of my time. Wow, that sucked.

"What do you mean?" Jenna asked, raising her brows, but I just shook it off.

"Well don't you stop, I love juicy shameful stories." Damon said, smirking as he continued to cut up vegetables. Shaking my head, I continued.

"What else would you like to know?" I asked, both Jenna and Damon shrugging.

"How about, the best make out you ever had?" Jenna asked, and I rolled my eyes and chugged the rest of my wine. I would need a little bit of courage.

"Well, after I dated Axel, I came up with the two month rule." I said, Jenna raising a brow, so I explained. "I let myself get too close to people too fast, and I figured if somebody stuck around for two months they probably wanted to know me, y'know? So anyway, when I was fifteen I went back to school, I'd skipped a whole bunch of grades due to... problems. Anyway, I met this guy, and it wasn't anything serious, but he was adamant on dubbing himself the make out king."

"No way." Jenna said, rolling her eyes, I chuckled as Damon raised his brows.

"Well he was bet by his friends that he could make out with every single girl in grades 9 to 12 for five minutes. Well that last girl was me." I said, and she raised a brow.

"What did you do?"

"Well he had asked me before, but I was called a bitter bitch for a reason, I really hated to know people, and letting people know me," I said, glancing at Damon. He had changed that- I wondered if he knew. "So I refused to do anything for him. Then one day he comes groveling to me, and says 'Ashlan, I swear to god you are going to die a bitter virgin'."

"What an opening." Damon teased, Jenna laughing.

"So I told him the reason I wouldn't do it was because he couldn't handle it." I said, Damon and Jenna raising a brow. "He challenged me, and said 'first person to pull away has to do something else for the other', so I agreed."

"How long were you guys making out for?" Jenna asked, and I grinned.

"An hour." I said with a smirk. "He didn't want to pull away, but I got bored and kneed him in the crotch. He let go and I said he had to dub me the make out queen, juuuust to piss off all those bitchy girls." I said, chugging some more wine. Jenna laughed a bit harder.

"But you cheated." She countered, to which I shrugged.

"Rules were made to be broken, as far as I'm concerned, he enjoy every second of it, so I think we're even. It was my best make out, buuuut I'm sure I could do better." I said, Damon smirking at me, I smirked back. Jenna looked between the two of us, and raised a brow, but I shook my head.

"What about you Jenna?" Damon asked, Jenna smiling.

"Back in college first year, they had a make out contest, the couple who kissed the longest got priority parking. So I joined up with Logan Fell." She said, thinking about it. "Three hours..."

"Wow." I laughed, trying to imagine that. "You and Fell, who would've thunk it." I laughed.

"Ever hear from him?" Damon asked, and I tried not to think about the attack, about Logan trying to kill me not once but twice.

"He's probably working on his tan in the Bahamas." Jenna said with a smirk. I clinked glasses with her to that.

"Men," I joked, Jenna smiling. "Can't live with them..."

"Love life without them." Jenna ended, Damon giving a mock sense of hurt.

"Aw what about me?" He asked in a mock sensitivity. I rolled my eyes.

"Okay, you can stay." I said as though it were a tough choice. He smirked at me and I smiled back.

"Hello Elena." Damon said, and we all looked to the entrance to see Elena standing there.

"Where's Stefan?" I asked, curious. She gave a strange look to Damon, before looking at both Jenna and I.

"He'll be here shortly." She said vaguely, making me frown slightly. Jeremy came down the stairs and plopped himself on the couch, Jenna finished her drink then and put her glass down before hopping off the counter.

"I'm going to go clean up a bit." She said, and I chuckled.

"You mean hide away because we're cooking for once?" I asked, and she smiled.

"Caught me." She said, but I let her go before putting my glass down and checking on the sauce. Stirring it occasionally. Elena stood in the doorway, watching Damon carefully, and I raised a brow at her.

"Something wrong?" I asked, and she looked at me, smiling a small smile.

"Elena where are the serving plates?" Damon asked. Elena looked to him, hesitating for a moment.

"They're in the pantry in the hallway." She said, and he walked off to get them. I raised a brow at her, looking at the plates sitting on the counter. What the hell? Elena walked over to me then, and I realized what was going on. Damon was just getting out of the room, because Elena wanted to talk to me.

"How are you feeling?" I asked her, to which she shrugged.

"I wanted to ask you something." She said, and I motioned for her to continue as I tested the sauce.

"How did you... How do you... I mean, you and Damon have this-"

"Bond?" I asked, and she sighed before nodding. I smiled softly. "To be honest, I have no idea. Sometimes I sit back and think- why the fuck do give a damn? Sometimes I ask myself- wouldn't it be easier if I hated him? I mean all the stuff he's done, shouldn't it pile up and make me regret it?" I asked, waving my hands and making motions as I talked. Elena just pursed her lips as though trying to keep from saying something, but then I laughed.

"But you know what? Despite everything Damon's done to me, and despite what might happen in the future, I know that at the end of the day, Damon will be there for me, so why shouldn't I be there for him?" I asked, leaning against the counter as I grabbed my wine glass. Elena sat at the island, and I raised a brow at her frustrated look.

"You do realize he's going to leave once Katherine's out of the tomb, right? He's just waiting to find the right spell for it and then he's getting her out and running away." She said, but I shrugged.

"I know," I said, and she frowned at me.

"But isn't that Damon running away from you too? How can you trust him?" She asked, but I shrugged again as I hopped up on the counter top again.

"Damon is..." I looked to the ceiling as though a script were up there. "In a lot of sense, the bad brother." I said, looking back at her. She gulped. "I know you think of Stefan as your white knight, that he is amazing and wonderful and perfect and you can accept that he is a vampire, but I think that with people like Stefan, it's easy to like them. It's easy to hold on to them, but it's just as easy to let go. Stefan will always have more friends than Damon, because it's easy for him to make them." I said, and Elena looked me dead in the eye, nodding for me to continue.

"But Damon? He doesn't make friends easily, you and I both know that. But when Damon makes friends, he does everything to keep them. Damon has done so much to try and protect me, you don't even know the half of what he did." I muttered, talking a gulp.

"He accepts all of my insanity, and I accept his. Damon will never have more than Stefan, but he will always have friends that will love for who he is. And isn't that just as much? I can accept that he has killed, I can accept that he loves a woman who tortured him into loving her, I can accept that I am just a distraction from his separation." I said, pausing to look down at my wine.

"Does it hurt? Of course, but at the same time, I know we're stronger than all those walls. I know that even if Damon leaves, he _will_ come back. I know that if I ask something of him, he'll do it."

"But why? How can you know this? Damon is only using you as a distraction, you said so yourself. How do you know you can trust him? He's not the kind to just hand it out." She said, but I just smiled.

"Because if the roles were reversed, I'd do it for him." I said, and she stopped for a moment. "I know that there are walls, but why are you with Stefan? Because you see something in him most won't. It's the same for Damon, just buried a little deeper." I said, smiling at her. "I think the reason Damon doesn't trust easy, it's because nobody trusts him."

"So what, you just handed out your trust?" She asked, and I nodded, taking a sip of my wine. "But why do you trust him? Why do you keep trusting him?"

"Because I know who Damon really is, cockiness aside. It was hard at first, but sometimes you just gotta try. And because..." I trailed off, looking at my wine. When I looked back at her, I held a faint smile.

"If I didn't believe in him, nobody would. Not even Damon."

She looked down at the table then, looking conflicted. I chugged the rest of my wine, before putting my glass down. I didn't like talking, yet all I seemed to do was talk, and it was driving me nuts. Maybe that was my problem- less talking more action. Yeah, I think I'll try that in the future.

"Mind watching the sauce?" I asked, Elena nodded, so I grinned and walked into the living room. Jeremy was playing a racing game, so I grinned and sat down next to him.

"Hey Jer, versus?"

* * *

Well, turns out I royally suck at video games.

I handed to remote off to Damon instead, who look at me, confused, but I just grinned.

"Go play, shoo!" I said, and he shrugged before sitting down on the couch. I watched for a moment, smiling, before I walked back into the kitchen. Jenna had come down and was grinning ear to ear.

"So are you guys like a thing?" She asked giddily, but I laughed a bit.

"Nah, we're just friends." I said with a smirk, Elena giving me a weird look.

"But he's insanely hot!" Jenna said, Elena shushing her with a laugh. I rolled my eyes.

"Just because you dream of liking peanut butter off of him Jenna doesn't mean we all want to." I said in a condescending tone, but I couldn't keep my grin off my face.

"You do think he's hot!" Jenna said, and I tried to pretend I wasn't worried Damon would hear, so I laughed and looked down at the counter top.

"Let's say this," I said, glancing over to the quiet duo. "I have personally licked caramel sauce off of him, and yes, you should try it sometime." I said with a wicked smirk, her eyes widening. Elena had a similar expression, surprise!

"Wow, some friendship you guys have, can I join?" Jenna joked, and I laughed. Damon probably wouldn't mind, I would though. Instead of replying, I took the plates and set them on the table, hearing a piece end of Damon's conversation with Jeremy.

"Hot trumps weird any day, _trust_ _me_." He teased, and I rolled my eyes before chucking a bunched up cloth at the back of his head. Bulls eye. He turned and looked at me, wiggling his brows.

Oh god, please don't be referring to me you little-

"Hey guys." Stefan said as he walked in the door. He gave me a look, and I turned to glance at Jenna before getting the hint.

"Jenna," I said, and then forgot what I was going to say. "I was wondering if you could do me a favor." I said, she shrugged.

"Sure, what is it?" She asked, but I motioned to the others and she seemed to understand. We both made our way upstairs, and we walked into her room and shut the door.

"What's the matter?" She asked, and I frowned, leaning against the door.

"What do you..." I trailed off, and then decided to chose something I'd been thinking about. "Do you think Damon and I would be cute as a couple?" I asked, and she laughed a bit, making my heart sink.

"A couple? You guys would be bombshells." She said, making me smile. "Why? Do you..?"

"Kind of," I said vaguely, listening to hear Elena and Stefan walking up the stairs. "I mean, I want to, but I don't think he does."

"There's only one way to find out." She teased, and I smiled, I guess there was. My attention was turned to Stefan and Elena when I heard them walking down the steps.

"I think I should go, I was supposed to meet Axel at the Grill for a... friendship talk." I said with a smirk, and she nodded in understanding.

"Don't make me keep you here, shoo!" She said, and I smiled before she walked me to the door and I grabbed my stuff before walking out. Stefan and Elena just driving away in her car. I frowned, before texting Damon.

_Brother and GF just made a break for it._

I began to walk after them, having driven with Damon and since he took the car I had to go on foot. My phone vibrated, and I looked down.

_Cemetery_

Why is it we always end up back there?

So I walked, for about an hour or two, and finally I came across them. Stefan was standing in a hole- a grave- and Elena was crouching next to him, both looking at a book in his hands.

"Well lookey here," I said, waltzing up to them with raised brows. "The noble white knight is tainted with lies." I said sarcastically, Elena looking at me with wide eyes.

"Ash-"

"Don't Ash me! You ask how I can trust Damon? How about how can I trust you?" I challenged, making her look down.

"Ash we can't let Katherine out." Elena said. "The other vampires too, none of them can leave." She said, but I just frowned at her. I walked up to Stefan, and held out my hand.

"Give it." I said, but he shook his head.

"Don't you want her to stay down there too? Katherine will wreak havoc on this town!" Stefan said, but I bit my lip.

"Sorry." I said, before glaring hard at him. Stefan gripped his head, and in that second he let go of the Grimoire. I stopped and picked the book up, backing away from them both.

"Look at this." Damon said, looking at the scene. I glanced at him, holding the book for him to see. However, Stefan seemed to have other plans as he ran behind me and clutched my throat. I gasped, throwing the book at Damon's feet. Damon seemed a little distracted with what was going on though.

"I won't let you open that tomb Damon." Stefan said, but Damon rolled his eyes and picked up the book.

"You won't hurt her, so let her go." Damon said, but I gasped when Stefan clutched my throat tighter, my airways blocked off almost completely. My eyes widened as I tried feebly to claw at his hands. Without being able to out strong arm him, and without being able to look at his face, I could nothing but stand there.

"I'll snap her neck, I did it once before Damon, I can do it again." Stefan said, referring to Madison. Damon glowered at Stefan then, he looked ready to kill. He glanced at Elena.

"You know I'll do it to keep her safe." Stefan said when he noticed Damon's stare at Elena.

Black dots filled my vision.

Damon shook his head, a muscle jumping in his jaw.

"_You wouldn't_."

"_Try me_."

Damon glared for a second more, but then he looked down at me. I knew this was the moment- Katherine or me? I knew this was the second that would decide whether we were really as strong as I thought. My eyes widened as Damon frowned at me, then looked down at the book.

"Damon." Elena said, but she sounded far away. Damon looked back at me before shaking his head.

"You won't hurt her." He said.

"I will Damon, if it keeps the rest safe you know I will." Stefan said, but despite being right behind me he sounded like he was shouting across a plain. Damon looked at him, and then me, I could feel the air leaving my body, my heartbeat felt like it was pounding inside my ears and ribcage. Damon looked at Stefan again.

"_It was always Katherine_."

Then he was gone.

Stefan dropped me, and I fell to the ground gasping for breath. My head hurt, my body ached, and all I wanted to do was pass out right then and there, but I didn't. The pain wouldn't stop, my heart wouldn't stop aching. My mind just kept on racing and no matter what I said to myself I couldn't block the sudden onslaught of fury.

_Why? _

_Why now?_

"I'm sorry." Stefan said, looking down at me with grief on his face. I looked up to him, amazed.

"What did you think?" I asked, shaking my head slightly, my eyes as wide as dinner plates. "That Damon was going to choose me?" I asked, making my way to wobbly feet. I glared at him, and tried to pretend that tears weren't flying out of my eyes. My voice was soft and high pitched, a tone I couldn't recall ever using before. My breaths came in shaky, but my head was shaking more as I tried to deny what just happened.

"I am** not** Madison." I said, looking right at Stefan.

"_I am nothing to him_." I said, but I wasn't sure who I was saying it to anymore- Stefan, or myself. Elena came over to hug me, and as much as I wanted to push away, I couldn't.

"I'm sorry Ashlan." Stefan said, but then I backed away from Elena and looked at them both, shaking my head again as the tears kept rolling down my face.

"No, you know what? It's fine. Everything's fine. For months I've been hoping, clinging to the prayer he would choose **me**," I said, gulping down some sniffles. "But now that there's no hope, I'm fine. Damon is **_never_** going to choose me, and I can't keep sitting here, hoping for it." I said, but Stefan shook his head. Despite this, I turned around and started to shakily walk away.

"Ash you need to listen to me. Damon knew I wasn't going to hurt you, that's why he took the Grimoire, because he knows I would hide it where he would never find it." Stefan said as he raced in front of me, planting his hands on my shoulders, but I just shook my head and pushed him away.

"Doesn't matter." I said, even I could hear the hollow tone, and started to walk home. "None of matters anymore." I growled.

When I got to the boarding house, I saw Damon sitting on the chair and my anger just soared. Damn him for making me think he was worried. Damn him for ever making me feel. You know what Damon? You're hurting me more this way, and I'm just a human, there is _no way in hell_ I would ever willingly go through again.

Maybe I would regret it later, but at the time, I just wanted him to know what I was feeling. I wanted him to realize that I wasn't some toy he could always play with.

He couldn't have me.

So when I saw him sitting in the library, I flipped open my phone and walked back down the halls, purposefully making noise. It wasn't fair, he couldn't play with me like this and act so nonchalant. Yet I knew, it was just who Damon was, well fine.

I can be an even bigger asshole that you could ever be.

Just watch me.

"_Hello_?"

"Axel," I began, swallowing, I glanced back down the hallway, and heard Damon flip another page to the book. Swallowing my pride on the next gulp, I glared sharply down to the library.

"We need to talk."

* * *

**So I think that a couple of you are gunna hate Damon, but honestly, I think Damon really would choose the Grimoire over Lani. I think Damon is thinking he can get her back easily, that Stefan wouldn't hurt her, and I think Damon is taking his relationship with Lani for granted.  
**

**Well... I think we can fix that.  
**

**Lani as been watching Damon do thing after thing for a while, but I wonder what Lani is willing to do to get under his skin. ;) I think Damon needs a wake up call and Lani needs to get back to her roots a bit- Damon changed her a lot, don't you think? I think her safest way to go is backwards, to figure out a few things and then raise Hell for Damon. Yes? No? I find it funny that all of you are voting for making Damon jealous, but honestly I think if Damon _really_ wanted Lani he'd tear her new BF to shreds if she pissed him off enough.  
**

**Idk whether I meant that literally or not...  
**

**I can tell you as far as what Lani is, I am very against copying Elena's situation. There's no originality to it. I hate stories that are so good and then they do that. WTF?!  
**

**Also, I was thinking a lot about the story, and I was thinking I'd jump into the second season... depends on where my mind wanders off to next! I also figured a way to incorporate Lani into the original plot! Go me! And I also found a way to keep Elena as the actual spotlight while still making Lani important! Look at me go! So yeah, review? I would totally go bonkers over ten more guys! Cuz then this is my highest number of reviews I've ever gotten on a story!  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: What do you think Lani is going to do?  
**


	23. I Can't Hold You When You're Cold

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** ''Eyes On Fire" -Blue Foundation  
_

_**Chapter** 23  
_

_"I Can't Hold You When You're So Cold"_

* * *

_Being friends with a vampire sucks. _

_Literally and Non-Literally. _

_I'm not sure what some of those authors are smoking when they have these super hot vampire guys falling for average girls. I mean let's be serious- they're how old? They could probably find a really good lay in the past century or two they've been around. Not to mention they could compel a beautiful woman into bed if they tried. _

_So having them fall for ordinary non-sexual women? _

_Pfft, yeah right. _

_What most books don't tell you though, is how good they are at hurting you too. If you think about it, they've also had centuries to come up with the best ways to smack down somebody, they better be pretty juiced up with comebacks to fascinate me. Yet it hurt all the same, and it made me worry a bit. _

_They never have these parts in vampire romance- the part where the female wants to be loved by the vampire, but at the same time wants to put a stake in his heart. At least, none of the novels I've read. They always have the vampire brooding quietly, alone, not in bed with whatever woman he finds appealing. The girl isn't usually an adult- she's usually in high school- and she usually doesn't stand up for herself unless it's to insult the male character. _

_I've learned though, that harsh words really can be useful against a vampire. _

_When you can't beat them with strength, butcher them with your words. _

_Worked for me, and now I probably lost one of my best friends._

* * *

While I sat there at the Grill, waiting for him to show up, my mind kept on wandering.

It had been four years, should I be this mad?

I had thought he was murdered, of course I should be this mad. Yet...

_"What? You want a fight? I'll take you on bitch!" _

_"Why are you doing this?"  
_

_"What?"  
_

_"You're such a pretty girl, why mark your face up with all those bruises? If you ask me, I think you'd look a lot better with a smile too."  
_

"Ashi?"

I jumped a little when I noticed he was there. He sat down, raising a brow at me, but I just shook my head. We were quiet for a moment, I looking at the table and him watching me carefully.

"Stefan told me what happened." He said, making my eyes snap up to his. Since when were they buddy buddy? Where was this memo? I never got one!

"Yeah well, Damon just proved my theory right." I said flatly, leaning against my upright hand set on the table. Axel tilted his head, his brow furrowing and his eyes narrowing.

"Proved what?" He asked, and I looked at the table, drawing shapeless designs into the wood with my free hand.

"I really am always alone."

Axel sighed, leaning in towards me. I could smell it then, this weird lemon sea salt scent that always used to get me. It assaulted my senses, and I found myself breathing deeply without meaning to.

"I never wanted to hurt you Ashi." He said, but I just snorted.

"You and half the world, get in line."

"I mean it," He said, his eyes sharp as they narrowed to just these deep emerald slits. Between him and Damon, I didn't know who had the best eyes. His were a green you only find in fine jewelery. "Ashi, I never meant to hurt you."

"You just said that."

"I meant it though," He said a bit sharper, making me frown. "Ash I was so scared you wouldn't accept me, and I couldn't bear the thought of that happening."

"I accepted Damon," I countered, leaning upright and glaring at him. "I accepted him, Stefan, I can even accept what you are, right here, right now."

"And look where it's got you."

That one hurt, and I tried to bite back the sniffles as I leaned away from the table, frowning.

"You never let me try Axel, you played everything out in your head, and you fucked it up. Big time." I snapped, but he shook his head, looking down at the table.

"Why did you call me then?" He asked, and I sighed.

"Honestly? To distract me, I wanted to make sure that I wasn't within an hour walk of that spell book or I might try and burn it, maybe burn Damon with it." I said sharply, still angry. He chose a fucking _book_ over _me_! I know I know, the book contained the spell to open the tomb but still! He chose this gaudy book over me!

"I wouldn't mind helping." Axel added with a smirk, and I raised my brows in mock surprise.

"I'm sure you would."

"Of course, bastard hurt my girl." I just rolled my eyes at that.

"You can't call me that, not after you broke up with me." I said, to which he sighed.

"Because I was on the verge of tearing you limb from limb." He said, but I shook my head.

"Damon never hurt me to that point. He fed off of me and I'm still breathing." I said, not realizing the implications until it was too late. Axel's eyes widened, and he let out a growl.

"You let him bite you?" He whispered harshly, and I sat there for a moment before frowning.

"So what? It's none of your business, and guess what Axel, that could've been you. I could've been having an intimate moment with you every day, I could've loved you. I wanted to love you." I said, shaking my head. "Now look where we are." I said, Axel sighing.

"You don't understand what I went through Ashi," He said, and for the first time since we started talking, I could sense the seriousness in his tone. "I didn't have any self control when I met you, and after? Before we started to get close I was tearing people apart, left and right. Nothing mattered, and then there was you." He said, pausing as he looked at me so intently, my own eyes stopped glaring as I listened to him, completely intent on hearing his reasoning.

"You, this strange, abnormal woman. This fifteen year old, who was ready to die in a brawl if it meant someone would look at you, acknowledge you. I felt so much pity, because I was the same when I was human. And then you changed, you opened up to me and I could see. This pathetic little girl, she was so mature, and she taught me, an old vampire, things I didn't even know. When you got though, I got scared."

"Why?" I asked, my brow furrowing, Axel took a deep breath in.

"If that ass has fed on you, did he have problems stopping at first?" He asked, and I looked down. That seemed to be all he needed as he continued.

"When we first kissed, that night on the tower?" He began, and I nodded. "I wanted to... to rip your throat out." He said, and I gulped.

"Is it really that bad?" I asked, surprised. Axel nodded.

"I don't know why, but it was the hardest thing I've ever done. Ashi, I thought that I was going to kill you. Maybe Damon has more control, or maybe he was lying to make you feel better, but I had no self control, I just did as I pleased. So when you came along, I knew, either I left or I turned you. Neither were great options, but I wasn't going to let you die."

"So let me get this straight," I said, making a list with my fingers. "You call me pathetic, then talk about how much you want to kill me, lie about what you are to me in the whole year we were together, get upset over Damon drinking from me, and say you have no self control?"

"Had, there's a difference. I learned to control my cravings, and I've gotten a lot better." He said, looking to the table and then back up to me.

"What do you want then? Why did follow me?" I asked, frowning. Axel gave me a small smile, shaking his head as he gave the start of a laugh.

"Honestly? I had this crazy dream I could come back and sweep you off your feet. Stupid me, I forgot you aren't like that." He said, making me hold my breath.

"Axe, I can't... you can't just..." I sighed and started again. "I waited for months, a year, two. If you had just told you needed time, I would've given you forever." I said, forgetting the implications again, but still I didn't care.

"Just tell me honestly Ashi," He said, leaning towards me again. "Do I still have a chance?"

Did he? I wanted to yell no, but something pulled me back. Maybe it was because I was so young then, thinking it was a good thing he left- I would've been in over my head- that it gave me enough space to keep growing. Maybe it was because I had liked him so much- Axel had been my best friend before Maria, and he probably would've been my special person right now if not for him leaving. Maybe I was also bitter, thinking that Axel wouldn't care if I used him as a distraction.

"Not right now," I said honestly, and he nodded. "But it's just because there's so much going on." I said, looking down at the table and taking a breath.

"Ashi-"

"I want to be friends," I said, looking him dead in the eye. "Because you were important to me once, and I hope we can be like that again."

"Yeah," Axel said, nodding and smiling. I felt a bit lighter at his honest enthusiasm. "I'll wait Ash, I will."

I smiled, but then my phone buzzed. Looking down, I frowned at the name.

_If you're done moping, come back to the house_

Damon.

"You know what," I said, smirking. "How much do you hate Damon?" I asked, smirking a bit. Axel raised his brow, but he too seemed excited.

"Very much."

"Well I-" I stopped mid-sentence when my eyes landed on somebody else.

Jeremy and that girl. The one that had tried to kill me. I gulped, about them and turned to open my mouth at Axel.

"_You're human_."

Her words got my mind buzzing again, and before I could say anything, I got up and walked over to her. Jeremy walked away to get some drinks, and when she noticed me her smile went blank.

"Why were you so surprised to find me human?" I asked, but she just frowned.

"Better walk away before I snap your neck." She threatened, but I was persistent.

"Why were you so surprised?" I asked again, emphasizing every word. She looked me up and down for a moment, before she smirked.

"The last time I saw Madison was in 1864." She began and I nodded.

"She was killed by the Salvatore Brothers." I said, and she smirked.

"The last time I saw Madison, she wasn't a human." She said, and my eyes widened.

What?

"Y-You mean she was a-"

"Not yet," The girl began looking around the lounge and then back to me. "She was in transition. Turns out Katherine slipped her blood too." She said, and before my eyes could pop out of their sockets from how wide they were, Jeremy returned.

"Hey Ash, come to play some Foosball?" He asked with a grin, but my brain wasn't working very well. "This is Anna by the way, do you know each other?" He asked, but I just stood there. Thank god Axel came up to me and saved my ass.

"Sorry, she's got a brain freeze from our milkshake drinking contest." He teased. "I don't think we've met, I'm Axel, Ashi's friend." He said, shaking hands with Jeremy.

"Jeremy." He said. "And this is Anna." He said, and I noticed the way Anna was hesitant to shake his hand.

"Nice to meet you Anna." He said softly. "Well I actually have to get Ash home, I promised to help her out with some things, you ready Ash?" He asked, and I nodded numbly.

"Bye Ash." Jeremy said, and I smiled before waving.

Oh my God.

Oh my fucking God.

Could Madison still be-

"Ash," Axel was snapping his fingers in front of my face, but I just stared at him, incredulous. "You okay?" Yet I could only shake my head and shout.

"Oh my god!"

* * *

**ELENA'S POV**

"I'm pretty sure this would give Ash another reason to hate us."

"Hate is a very strong choice of words." Stefan teased, and I laughed. Earlier I had asked Caroline something that Ash said she liked, and since Caroline had been buzzing around and asking her questions, she gave us a quick reply. Apparently Ash had a soft spot for vanilla and orange cake with lime icing. A strange cake, but okay. It probably wouldn't make her forgive us, but Stefan offered to help since it might distract her from Damon.

Right now though?

This cake was really hard to bake.

"Do you think we should put some cheesy 'I'm sorry' writing on top? Or would that go over the edge?" I asked, Stefan smiling at me.

"Ash seems like the type to like thoughtful stuff, so maybe not." He said, holding me around my waist. The smile dropped off my face for a moment.

"I just feel bad. Maybe we should've told her?" I asked, but Stefan shook his head.

"She would've told Damon right away, she trusts Damon more than anyone else. Well, did." He added, making me frown a bit more. Just then, Damon walked into the kitchen, the phone against his ear. He had this huge frown on his face as he walked to the far side of the counter from us. Pulling his phone away, he stared at it for a second before ending the call.

"Have you seen Lani? She's not answering my calls."

You must be kidding me.

"She's probably just dodging you Damon," I said bluntly. "You know, the thing people do when they don't want to talk with you?"

He gave me a glare, but then shook his head.

"Even upset, she'd at least tell me to go to hell." He said, and I actually heard the worry in his voice. A frown come over my face as I turned to Stefan, who looked equally worried. Damon too looked to his younger brother.

"I'm pretty sure she's just ignoring you Damon. It's not everyday her best friend chooses a book over her," I said, but then I added when he turned to glare at me. "But with you it might be."

His glare was really intense then, I wonder how Ash got used to it, she rarely ever looked bothered. There was something in there though- was he actually worried?

"I wouldn't worry about her." Stefan said, holding up his phone for both of us to read.

_Hanging out, be back soon_

Ash.

Stefan had texted her while Damon was glaring at me, but when the older brother saw the text, a strange look crossed his eyes. Was it pain? I'd never seen it before, and in the next moment it was gone.

"You sure that's her?" Damon asked, and I rolled my eyes.

"She's fine Damon."

Both their heads snapped up then, making me worry.

"What?" I asked, but was answered with the front door opening.

"And I was like, 'We're all wearing stripes dummy!' man did he feel stupid!" Ash said, and I could hear another person laughing with her. Was that Axel?

"Weren't they..." I trailed off when I noticed Stefan looking at Damon.

Who looked unrealistically calm.

Oh shit.

"I think next time, you should be the cheerleader." Axel said, but Ash laughed.

"You kidding me? I'm happy having a sexy male cheerleader, and between the two of us you would look better in a miniskirt." She said jokingly as they made their way to the kitchen. I raised my brow, and couldn't help but laugh a bit when I heard her saying that. Axel shrugged when he saw the look on my face.

"Her words, not mine." He teased, but Ash just sat down at the counter, Axel following her. I looked to Stefan, and he looked to Damon.

Who hadn't moved a muscle.

"So," Ash began, looking at the mixing bowl of green icing. "How goes the evening?" She asked, and I quirked a brow.

"Seriously? You over it?" I asked, amazed by her 180 spin. She shrugged.

"To be honest, nope, buuut I figured you are my friend and friends make stupid choices. I mean it's not like you chose a rusty book over me." She added darkly, and both mine and Stefan's eyes shot to Damon.

Oh no.

He turned to raise a brow at her, smirking.

"Have fun with the Pity Police? Or were you too busy offering him your blood?" Damon asked, making my eyes widen. What scared me more, was the smirk on Ash's face.

"Pity Police were too busy helping you with your love life," She said sharply, making Damon frown. "So I hung out with Axel." She said, smiling to him. Axel himself didn't look awkward at all, he was just sitting there enjoying the show. He and Ash must've been tight before, because he seemed to know she could handle it by herself.

"This is your attempt at making me jealous?" Damon asked with a dry humor in his tone, but Ash just raised a brow. "Well aren't you a big girl now." He mocked but she snorted.

"At least I don't have to sleep with fifty million women to feel satisfied with my Poor Me Syndrome filled life." She countered, leaning closer to him.

"At least I can get fifty million women, you can't even get one guy to sleep with you." He said, leaning closer as well. Axel watched with a raised brow as his friend leaned further away from him and closer to Damon. I got a little nervous, Stefan looking at me and Axel.

"Why don't we go to the parlor?" I offered, watching Ash and Damon glare.

"At least I know I never had a chance of getting AIDS, if you were a human I'll bet you'd be so full of it you'd be so chalked full of diseases you'd die in a weak."

"Sorry I'm not human, we vampires aren't as pathetic as you are."

"I'm sure Katherine thought the same thing the first night you slept together. Maybe that's why she couldn't chose you, because you're just an awful man whore."

"Says the girl who blushes whenever I bite her."

Moving to the parlor hadn't changed anything, we could all still hear them from the kitchen as they shouted. I looked to Stefan and tried to smile, but he shook his head.

"Is there anything we can do?" I asked, but Stefan shook his head again.

"It's probably safer for us to let them battle it out." Stefan said, and I looked over to Axel who was smirking at the kitchen. I frowned.

"Why are you so calm?" I asked, to which he smirked.

"Ash is just giving Damon what he deserves. Trust me, they need to get rid of some of that tension." He said, making me furrow my brow.

"Please, you probably get an erection off the smell of my skin babes. I blush because my blood is trying to get away from your nasty chompers." Ash spat, and I rolled my eyes.

"Go tell your man whore to get out of my house." Damon said.

"It's my home too Damon."

"I don't care, he can't be in here."

"What's the matter? Jealous?" Ash challenged. "You know praying to the sky won't give you patience." She added, making me giggle.

"I'm not praying for patience, I'm praying for you to look away so I can snap your neck."

"Bite me Damon, you seem to love doing that." She said.

"I'm on a fat free diet."

"YOU DID NOT JUST INSULT MY WEIGHT!" She screamed so loud I heard her loud and clear. Stefan even winced a bit, along with Axel who let out a laugh.

"You're such and egotistic asshole opportunist, you know that? I don't even know how we became friends!"

"You say it like it such a bad thing." He said sharply. "You know why you're here, so why don't you say it."

It went quiet for a moment, and then the sound of glass breaking made me jump in my seat. Suddenly Ash was marching to the door. Damon can walking after her with an exasperated look on his face.

"Where are you going?" He asked as though he were exhausted. Ash ignored him and grabbed her jacket from the couch, frowning. She didn't even look at him as she walked over to me and Stefan.

"Would you mind if I borrowed your clothes? I have your bag in my trunk still." She said, and I nodded before she turned to Stefan who looked just as confused. "And would you mind bringing my binder tomorrow? It's upstairs in my room, Bella's gone to talk to the Bennetts, so you should be safe going in there." She said stone cold serious. I was surprised, with all the seriousness I had seen from her, I had never seen Ash look so...

Hollow.

Stefan nodded, and she turned on her heel and grabbed Axel's hand.

"Where are you going." Damon demanded as he appeared in front of Ash. She stopped for a second, and I saw her hand grip Axel's a bit tighter.

"I'm staying with my best friend." She said sharply, and I knew that her words hit a nerve in Damon, because when she went to pass him, he didn't even move. It wasn't until the door slammed, the car's engine revved, and the tail lights were no longer visible before anybody said anything.

"Well," Damon said, rolling his eyes and turning to us with a smirk. "I don't know about you, but I've had my fill of drama for eternity." He said, and I gawked at him. How could he just brush this off?

"You do realize she might not come back, right?" Stefan asked, shaking his head at Damon. The older brother in turn stopped smirking, his lips a flat line. He looked to the ground for a second, and I turned to Stefan with a raised brow.

"Never come back?" I asked, a little worried.

"I don't mean leave Mystic Falls, but if Damon plans to leave once the tomb is open..." Stefan trailed off, and I put the pieces together.

"Then she might stay with Axel until he does." I said in realization. Damon pursed his lips, his brows furrowing.

"Great," He said. "One less pest to bother me." He muttered. "If I had known it was that simple I would've done it a while ago." He said, walking out of the room.

"Does he-" I began, turning to Stefan, but he shook his head. He already knew what I meant.

No, Damon didn't really mean what he said.

At all.

* * *

**ASHLAN'S POV**

_Please come help_

I sighed. That was the fiftieth text I had gotten today. Elena and Stefan were going to help Damon open the tomb, and they figured having me help would be a good idea.

Plus they wanted Bella to help too, and I was worried if I stayed home that they would just lock Damon in the tomb. As much as he deserved it, I didn't want my mind to wander to him.

After tonight, he would be gone, forever.

I would lose my best friend.

Well no, I think I already lost him.

Fuck.

_Fine, I'll be there_

I sent the text and then rolled over. Axel had been living in a small apartment close to the Grill. I had spent the night, feeling guilty when, in my rage, I made him sleep on the floor. Still, he made coffee in the morning and gave me my space. I said I was sorry, but he said I needed to get it out of my system.

During mid day I found myself wanting to write in my journal, upset that it wasn't on my bedside table. It was on Damon's- I had found no sense in hiding it, I had a fear if I hid it well enough he might find the other one. So I left it there, and I only wrote what I thought would be okay and acceptable to write.

"You sure about this?" Axel asked, sitting on the bed. I bounced a little when he flopped down beside me, but otherwise didn't move.

"I am not a toy," I said, biting my lip. "And if Damon can't see me as anything but, then I have to let him go."

Despite my saying this, I didn't mean it one bit. I kept telling myself- just one more day- but I knew that day may never come. So instead, I got dressed in Elena's clothing- a size too small, but I would manage- and tied my blood red hair back before walking to the door.

"Did you want me to come?" Axel asked, but I just frowned and looked at him. My head started to shake of it's own accord.

"No," I began. "It's not that bad, besides, I'll come back later." I said, kissing his cheek. He gave me a soft smile and kissed my forehead, before backing away.

"Good luck." He said, I smiled before nodding. Then I made my way out.

Here goes nothing.

* * *

"Sorry I'm late." I said bluntly as I walked down the steps of the tomb. Everyone looked up at me, but I just stared back. Bella smiled at me, but I glared back.

"Came to make sure you didn't lock Stefan in." I said sharply, frowning at her. She frowned too, but I looked to Elena who smiled at me.

"Thanks for coming." She said, and I stood next to her. Damon was staring at me, but I refused to look at him.

"So are we almost ready?" I asked, but Bella motioned for me to come closer.

"Come here Ashi, I need your ring." She said, and I walked up to her, showing her my hand. She took the vervain soaked ring and I raised a brow while quirking my head to the side.

"Why that one?" I asked, but just smiled at me.

"This ring was specially made by my sister. Her powers were locked away. I believe by channeling her we will be even more juiced up." She said with a wink. I rolled my eyes and smiled.

"So what, Damon grabs grimy girl, and Stefan and I kill the rest with fire, and we're home free?" I asked, to which Bonnie nodded, but the look on Bella's face made me frown. Why did she look so... cheerful?

"We're ready when you are Bella." Bonnie's Gran said. I had only met her once when I had been talking with Bonnie and Elena, but she seemed like a bold woman. Bella nodded, before all three of them held hands. I backed away, standing in front of Stefan and Damon.

"Admit it," Damon said. "You guys can't wait to get rid of me." He teased lightheartedly, and I had a feeling he was bored of this town.

Bored of me.

I frowned, and looked up at him, but when he caught my eyes it was like everything paused for a second. I tried to hide the sharp pain I felt in my chest, but I knew it was useless.

"I can't wait to get rid of you."

It was Stefan who said it, but between Damon and I, we both knew I wanted to. Turning back, I watched the witches chant, ignoring Stefan and Elena talking about what language they were speaking. The door suddenly opened, and I bit back a gasp, sucking in air. Damon walked to the door, looking over to Stefan.

"I'll get the gasoline." Stefan said, running back up the stairs. Damon looked to the door, but then he looked at Elena.

"Let's go." He said, and I raised my brow, looking between the two.

"Don't you dare bring her in there!" Gran said.

"I'll crush you!" Bella added, but I frowned.

"Hey it's okay. He just needs leverage that you guys aren't going to lock him in, I'm fine." Elena said, looking at me.

"Elena don't go in, he might leave you down there." Bonnie said.

"Not to mention his girl is probably starving." Bella added. Elena looked to me, same with Damon, but I just gave her an incredulous look before rolling my eyes.

"For the love of-" I stopped before I started to curse and grabbed a torch. "I'll go first." I spat, ignoring Bella's rejections tot he idea as I walked right into the door.

"Show looks like Elena, right?" I called, but jumped a bit when Damon and Elena appeared behind me.

"Yeah, a duplicate." He said, sounding excited. I bit back a growl and walked faster. He came up next to me, the light of Elena's flashlight telling me she wasn't far behind.

"Thank you." He said, and I looked up to him. His brows were knitted together, and he looked honest, but I just frowned.

"The sooner you leave town the better." I said, before I took off down one of the pathways.

"Ash!" Elena called, but I ignored her. Damon must've chosen a different path, because I was alone a minute later. I searched, seeing body after body, letting out a small scream when they looked up at me, and when I fell onto one I practically passed out before leaping to my feet to keep running. It was only when I heard Elena's scream that time seemed to become real to me again. I took a passage, and crashed right into Damon.

"Did you find her?!" He asked, but I shook my head.

"Where's Elena?" I asked, but he ignored me and kept running. "Damon!" I screamed, but he ignored me. I took off down another path, crashing into Stefan this time.

"Where's Elena?" I asked, panicked, but he shook his head.

"She's fine, but we need to get out of the tomb, quick." He said, and I nodded. "But Damon..." I began, looking down the way he had gone. Stefan nodded.

"I'll get him."

I nodded, before we both separated and ran in opposite directions. When I emerged again, I glared at Bella.

"What did you do?" I demanded, seeing the prideful looks on the witch's faces.

"He had to be stopped," Bella said. "My little girl was getting tainted by him." She said sharply, but I shook my head.

"We had to stop him from hurting everyone Ash." Bonnie said, but my eyes just got wider.

"We never removed the spell, they are still trapped inside." Gran said.

"And Stefan-"

"He made his choice." Gran said, and I looked at Elena who was fighting back tears. I shook my head, and looked at Bella.

"Please," I begged, my voice hurting as my chest grew tight. "Please Bella, get them out." I begged, but she shook her head.

"He's going to be the death of you Ashi, I can't." She said insistently, but I ran up to her and grabbed her clothing, shaking her.

"I'm begging you! If you even have one shred of understanding with me, if you love me as much as you say you do, please! Let him out! Get them out! Please!" I cried, tears flying down my face. She looked at me, upset and pained, before she turned to the Bennetts and nodded. Gran sighed and shook her head, but she held hands with Bonnie and Bella anyways.

Anna emerged with a woman, and she watched us.

"I just want my mother." She said, and I nodded, both her and the woman fleeing quickly.

Backing away, I watched the door like a hawk as the three girls gave their all to actually break the spell. Before I could do anything else, three bodies emerged.

Three bodies...

Stefan, Damon...Elena...?

"Where's Katherine?" I asked, surprised. Stefan shook his head, and my eyes widened.

She wasn't in there?

All three witches had collapsed, but Bella refused aid from me, pushing me away. I knew she was upset, but I wiped my eyes and went to walk out from the tomb.

I should've been glad, really, it was a good thing that Damon hadn't found Katherine, it means I-

Oh who am I kidding? If a unimaginably strong spell couldn't keep him from her, what's to say the world wouldn't? The others came walking out after me, and I looked over to Damon as he strayed from the group. Elena suddenly started to run, Stefan running after her. I noticed a body lying on the ground- Jeremy?

Damon turned around to look at them, and then his eyes fell on me.

Don't look at me like that, with that painful expression. Don't act like before, don't make me want to hug you. Please... just...

Yet I found myself taking slow steps towards him-

Elena beat me to it though, and she hugged him tightly. I pursed my lips, a frown appearing on my face as I looked away.

"I'm sorry." Elena said, but I could still feel Damon's eyes on me. Instead, I walked to Stefan, and he nodded at me.

"I'm going back to Axel's." I said, and he nodded in understanding. "If Bella needs me, don't hesitate to call. She probably doesn't want to talk to me right now." I said, before giving him a hug. "Thank you for trying." I said.

"Thank you." He said back, but I didn't know what for. I turned to look at the two once again, Damon looking off into the distance now as Elena continued to hug him, before I walked away.

When I got back to Axel's, he saw my frown and realized something was wrong.

"Is he-" I shook my head.

"Katherine wasn't there." I said, and he sighed, cupping my face.

"I'm so-"

"Shhhh, not talking." I said, before pushing him down and lying curled up next to him. I didn't want to talk, I didn't want to think, all I wanted was for someone, anyone, to hold me. Axel did, he held me all night, even after I drifted off. The next morning when I woke up, he had still slept in that uncomfortable position for me.

I felt so bad for using him.

* * *

**STEFAN'S POV**

"_Do you think he'll be alright?_" Elena asked as I walked down the halls to the lounge. I didn't know the answer to that though, and I wasn't sure I wanted to either.

"I'll find out, you and Bonnie help Bella and Sheila, I'll talk to him." I said, before shutting my phone and walking over to the fireplace. Damon sat on one chair, just staring into the flames. I sat on another chair nearby, and we just sat there for the longest time. To my surprise, he spoke first, and I didn't expect what came out of his throat.

"I made the wrong choice." He said lifelessly. My brow furrowed as I looked to him.

"I chose the wrong woman." He said again, just as hollow. It was then that I realized what he meant, and I swallowed. I had played a part in it, and even if Damon was always planning to choose Katherine, he never wanted to openly show it to Ash.

"Ash will forgive you Damon, you just have to mean it." I said, and he looked over to me without changing his blank expression.

"She'd have to have brain damage," He muttered, taking a swig of his drink. "I wouldn't take me back."

"Damon-"

"You know what she said, the night I chose Katherine over her? She was talking with Elena, and I could hear every word she said." He said, frowning as he looked down at his drink. I stayed silent as he furrowed his brow.

"She said, 'If I didn't believe in him, nobody would. Not even Damon.' and you know what? She was right." He said dully as he swallowed the rest of his drink.

"Ash trusts you more than anybody else Damon. If you talk to her, she'll listen." I insisted, hoping he wouldn't give up. It was his humanity that was hurting him, and I knew, if he tried, his humanity could make him happy with Ashlan. I was afraid he would turn it off before then though. That was one of my greater fears.

He laughed dryly.

"I don't know what you see baby brother," He said, standing up. He looked at me with a flat expression again. "But I know now that I'm going to be the one to damn her to hell." He said before placing his glass on top of the fire place.

"What do you mean by that Damon?" I asked, frowning. He gave me a look as though it was obvious.

"Think about it."

It was the last thing he said before he walked out of the room, leaving me surprised.

That was not what I was expecting.

It worried me greatly though.

* * *

**Well well well... what have we here? A regretful Damon? An upset Lani? Seems nobody is happy!  
**

**Aw don't worry guys! I have a very special idea planned! Anybody else like their fight? I was scratching my head- I'm not very funny, so I was trying to figure out a way to make it at least remotely humorous...  
**

**Can anyone smell Delena lurking around? Urgh, it wreaks! Okay, I think we better fix things up! A lot of you really want to piss Damon off huh? Can't say I blame you!  
**

**Ohhhhh what about Madi?! Anybody see that coming?!  
**

**By the way guys...  
**

**THIS IS THE LONGEST CHAPTER YET!  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: Is Damon in character still? What do you think happened to Madi?  
**


	24. I Had To Let You Go

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** ''Everything Changes" -Staind  
_

_**Chapter** 24  
_

_"I Had To Let Go"_

* * *

"I don't think it's a good idea."

"Yeah well, I should talk to them anyways." I countered, looking up at him. Axel frowned at me, before shrugging and hiding it with a smirk.

"You're pretty feisty today," He teased, making me smile back. "I like it." He said with sass. He gently guided me to the exit of the Grill, and I walked out to talk with Stefan and Ric.

They looked pretty somber, and I tried not to let it dampen my mood though.

"Hey," Stefan said, and I nodded. I hadn't seen him in a while since I started staying at Axel's. "Look I wouldn't ask if it wasn't important but..." He trailed off but I shook my head.

"No, whatever it is, I can do it." I said, looking at Ric. "How much do you know anyway?" I asked, confused.

"He knows about us," Stefan began, Ric nodding. "Look the thing I need you to do, you sure you're up for it?" He asked again, but I just furrowed my brow and nodded. Ric and Stefan exchanged glances, before Ric pulled out a photo.

"This is Isobel, my dead wife." He said, handing me the photo.

"This is Elena's birth mother, possibly." Stefan said, and I looked up with wide eyes. The day Jenna had told me about Elena getting upset about finding out had been pushed to the back of my brain with all that had happened.

"There's also a chance that your boy toy killed her." Ric added sharply and my eyes snapped to him.

"Axel?" I asked, confused, but Stefan shook his head.

"Damon," He said, and I realized what he wanted as understanding washed over me. "I would normally ask, but right now I think you are the only person Damon wants to talk to." He said, I rolled my eyes.

"Damon hates my guts right now." I said, frowning.

"Trust me Ash," Stefan said, looking me right in the eye. The look of seriousness bothered me. "I don't think he knows how to hate you." He said in such a serious tone that I shivered. Looking at the ground, I nodded.

"Okay," I said, looking back at the two. "I can do it."

I texted Axel that I had to go, and he gave me a very bleak _good luck :(_ in return. Since Stefan had walked, I drove us both back to the boarding house. My mind kept on wandering though, wondering how Damon was.

"So how many girls?" I asked, glancing at Stefan. He was quiet for a moment, before he sighed.

"Four I think." He said flatly, I pursed my lips and shook my head. Typical Damon, break the hurt with lots of sex, blood, and alcohol.

"Tell me Ash," He began, but I continued to watch the road. "Do you think you could forgive him?"

Could I forgive him? Of course I could, Damon was still my friend, and I still loved him. Was I happy he was still here? Yup, I was beaming, but at the same time, I was angry. For months I had been fretting over him being taken from me, for months I had spent my time with him to the best of my ability- and for what? For him to choose a stupid book over me. That doesn't exactly bode well for my ego.

"I will always forgive him, even when he doesn't deserve it," I said, frowning lightly. "But I wasn't the one who made the choice. Damon did it all on his own, so he better fix it all on his own if..."

If he ever wanted me.

Stefan put a hand on my shoulder, and I glanced at him with a smile.

"I think you are the only one who can make Damon talk. And I also think that you are the only one who can fix him." He said, but I shook my head.

"Madison was the only one." I corrected, and he smiled sadly, because we both knew, that was the honest truth. When we arrived at the boarding house, I stopped at the front door and sighed.

"You'll do fine." Stefan said, smiling at me, I tried to smile back- it wasn't as real. We walked inside, and up the stairs.

"Are you sure I'm cut out for this crap? I think I'm more of a basket case than the rest of you." I said with a small smile. Stefan laughed, shaking his head.

"Trust me Ash," He said, looking up the stairs as we walked to his room. "You're the most qualified."

"Gee, that makes me feel so great." I said flatly, and we both chuckled before walking into his room.

Damon was standing there, his back to us, Elena buttoning up his shirt. I raised a brow, but when she looked at me, her hands dropped to her sides and then she walked over to Stefan. Damon opened his mouth as he turned around, but shut it again when his eyes locked onto me. My arms crossed over my chest as I raised a brow at him.

"Oh please don't start fighting." Elena said, exasperated. Neither of us moved though, not for a whole minute.

"Don't worry," Damon said, walking up to us. He walked almost up to me, and I could feel my heart beat faster. "It's not worth it." He said in a harsh whisper that we could all hear while he shoved past me. I stood there, staring at the spot he had been before, then I glanced at Stefan.

"Still think I'm qualified?" I challenged, Stefan just sighed as I walked out of the room to follow Damon. He had stopped in the parlor, and was filling his glass.

"Damon," I began, walking into the room and stopping by the fireplace. "We need to talk." I said.

"Sorry," He said, looking at me with slightly deranged eyes, a smirk on his lips. "Too busy being free." He said, but I raised a brow, glancing at the alcohol in his glass.

"Yeah, you look high as a kite." I said, pursing my lips and nodding for a moment. Damon chugged his glass before glaring at me.

"Just admit it, you were so excited when we went into that tomb. I'll bet you were hoping to find Katherine and hand her over to me so I could go skipping daisies with her in the next town over. And you would never see me again." He said before turning around and filling his glass again. Searching the ceiling, I tried to find the patience, but then I frowned and walked up to him.

"Actually, you really want to know what I was thinking?" I asked, standing just a few feet from him. He turned, taking another sip from his glass, raising and lowering his eyebrows quickly.

"Try me." He said, and I gave a start of a dry, humorless laugh. Looking at his glass, and then at him, I frowned.

"I didn't go in the tomb for you." I said, and he smirked.

"Oh no?" He asked, pretending to be surprised. I shook my head.

"I went for me." I said, and he actually chuckled then, trying to turn around. In a spurt of rage, I grabbed his arm and yanked him back to face me. He glared down at me, but I didn't waver.

"I went in, because I wanted to kill that little bitch." I said sharpy. I hated her for what she did to him and Madison, for what she had indirectly done to him and me. Damon frowned at me, before then he smirked again.

"Oh," He said, but it wasn't said so simply, he had a wicked undertone. "So you went down there because you were jealous?" He laughed, and I frowned when he wretched his arm away from me. He laughed a bit more, grabbing my chin and making me look up at him.

"Why keep hiding it then? Why don't you just admit it?" He challenged, and I pursed my lips as he looked at me, dead serious.

"Damon-"

"You love me, don't you." He said, matter-of-factually. He had this wicked smirk still, and I just took a breath. _He's drunk_ I tried to tell myself. _He's hurt, alone, upset and-_ oh fuck it. I wasn't his toy, I wasn't going to play the game his way anymore. You're on Damon, I can definitely be your equal.

"I did." I said, making him let go of me as I continued to glare. His hand cupped my cheek, and this strange look came over his face.

"You mean you still do." He countered, a smirk playing at his lips again as he did his little eye thing. I slapped his hand away, and it was as though I had slapped his face too.

"I said I did, past tense." I snapped. "You're the one who made the decision all by yourself Damon. I waited, and I played the little toy for too long. I'm not Madison, and I can't wait forever. You want something from me, just say it." I said, before shaking my head again. "Just stop playing games." I asked in an almost pleading tone. He just stood there for a moment, glaring at me, that intense gaze back. I couldn't handle it though, and turned around and marched out of the room.

Stefan found me in the halls, and I smiled halfheartedly.

"Sorry, major cat fights don't bode well with questions of dead people." I said, handing the picture back to him. Then I continued on out of the house.

This was so stupid.

* * *

"Why aren't you upfront? I thought you would've bought a ticket to get a date with your... tall, dark, assholish fiend of a friend."

I chuckled dryly when Axel slid onto the bar stool next to me. He took my glass and chugged it in one go, but I just rolled my eyes and let him drink. The bachelor auction was on right now, but to be honest I wasn't even remotely interested.

"Nope, I'd rather waste my woes in drink." I said, taking another gulp. There was no way I was sober to drive anymore, so I figured walking home would be a good idea right about now. Looking at Axel, I smiled and gave him a pat.

"Been real Axelicious." I said, stumbling a little bit. He rolled his eyes and grabbed my waist.

"You gunna be okay to walk home?" He asked, a chuckle slipping through his lips. I shrugged- even if I wasn't, I'd find some home to stop in.

"Let me go mister, before I do that brain burning thingy." I said, and he let me go. After about twenty more minutes of arguing, Axel really did let me go, and I walked down the street.

The sky was clear, showing me millions of twinkling lights. With a small smile, I walked up to the boarding house. Yet with every step closer, I started filling even more with dread.

I didn't want to face Damon, I had a fear that he would finally leave. Stupid me, preparing for so long and suddenly it be real of it's own accord. Without thinking about it, I followed a dear path through the woods. Hopefully this would be a short cut... and if not I did have a vervain flower in my pocket.

A woman was sitting on a large rock, I waved to her.

"Hey." I said, walking along the path-

Wait what?

I halted and back tracked a good dozen or so steps. My gaze locked on the woman again, and I raised a brow.

Since when do women wear those types of dresses? I had only seen those in the history books Ric had shown me. Of course I had mocked the quality, Ric arguing school funding sucked, but despite that- and the haze of alcohol- I could very distinctly recall that from the Victorian Period. Tilting my head to the side, I gave her a questioning glance.

She sat there, looking rather pretty as her long blood red hair flowed down to her seat. It spilled over the rock, and trailed in a long loose braid. Her face looked smooth, as though she had never been in the sun with such a flawless white complexion. Her eyes were captivating though, those big steel eyes, Damon had a rival now, her eyes were fucking gorgeous. She smiled at me, and it took all of two seconds for me to realize where I recognized her from.

The mirror.

She looked so much like me.

"Who are you?" I asked, and although my tone was worse for wear, I didn't give a damn. Who was she? Why did she look so similar to me, yet not? I knew she wasn't me, she was a lot prettier than me for one, and she looked older- possibly thirty? Yet she looked young too. It was hard to explain, and it bothered me a lot. That smile on her face grew when she saw staring at her.

"You're not ugly." She said, as though it were a decent trait to have. I pursed my lips and furrowed my brow.

"Gee thanks babes, really love the compliments." I said, looking her over. Her dress looked brand new, surely she was cosplaying or something? Had to be, nobody wore that style of dress anymore.

"I was worried you would be a quiet woman, but I can see why he likes you." She said, making me feel awkward. Who in the seven layers of hell was she talking about now?

"Ummm, thank you?" I asked, she giggled.

"I hope you'll take care of him, I couldn't." She said, but before I could say anything her eyes snapped to me. "But you should remember, he will always love me most." She said, and I raised a brow.

"Who?" I asked, confused beyond belief. She pursed her lips as though keeping a secret, before standing up.

"I must go now, it was nice meeting you, Ashlan Corral." She said, giggling slightly. "I really do like the name."

"I really would like to know yours." I snapped back, getting irritated.

"You already know." She said, before walking away into the forest. I shrugged, turned around to walk the other way- oh wait the boarding house is this way- where the fuck did she go?! She-she was there and now she-

Oh my god.

Was that a vampire?

I felt around my body, making sure everything was still intact. Whew, it was, so I continued to march to the boarding house. When I got in, I stumbled a bit in the doorway, but I figured one more drink for the night wouldn't be bad. I walked over to the parlor then, stopping dead in my tracks when I saw the fireplace.

Ric was heaving in front of it.

"Ric!" I shouted, running to drop beside him. He looked up to me, his eyes wide and afraid. My heartbeat thumped away in my chest, and I began to panic.

"N-No! No, I-I can h-help." I said, but I knew it was already too late as I feebly tried to cover the wound. "Ric! No!" I cried, looking down to my hands.

They were soaked in blood.

Memories of Maria, of my bloody hands flashed before me, and just like that a damn was broken. The pain and the misery, it swept me away, a tidal wave I couldn't get over was there. My chest felt like pins and needles were stabbing at it with each prick. I cried, looking down at his now still form.

"No, not again." I said, looking back at my bloody hands. "I'm sorry."

"Just give it up Red. He's long gone now." I could hear him saying, and something tore even deeper inside of me.

Damon?

"He deserved it." Damon said, and I slowly turned my head to look at him as he poured another drink. He held it out for me to take, but I just stared at him with wide disbelieving eyes.

Why?

He shrugged when I didn't take it, swallowing it on his own before putting it down. Looking down at me, he raised a brow but then rolled his eyes and patted my shoulder.

"Come on, you grab his legs and I'll get his shoulders." Damon said, lifting me to my feet. I just kept on watching him as he walked over to Ric's head. When I didn't move, he looked up to me, confused. My lips started moving before I even realized they were.

"You killed him." I said, and he gave me a confused look.

"Yeah?" He asked, unsure of what I was getting at.

"Just because?" I asked, and he rolled his eyes.

"No, because he called me ugly." He said, but then glared at me. "Of course Lani, he came at me and I got made. Deal with it." He spat. "Now give me a hand." He added, but I shook my head, looking down at my hands.

They were so bloody.

Walking over the the set, I put my hands in the half melted ice tub, and rubbed them to the best of my ability. Damon raised a brow at me, coming over.

"What are you doing?" He asked, but I shook my head- I had to get my hands clean.

"So much blood." I whispered, memories and feelings of Maria flashing across my eyes. Shaking my head again, I scrubbed a bit harder.

"Lani, there's no blood."

"Yes there is, look at it all, see? It's covering my hands!" I said, my voice raising an octave or two.

"Lani, Lani!" Damon said, grabbing my arm. I recoiled away from him, my eyes widening even more.

"Don't _touch me_!" I screeched, and he looked at me as though I were insane.

"What the hell is wrong with you? Are you drunk?" He asked, taking a step towards me, but all I could remember was that feeling, of holding Maria's body and knowing she would never come back.

I backed away.

Damon stopped, raising a brow at me. My heart was hurting my chest, it was beating so fast.

"Lani," Damon said calmly, trying to take a step towards me. "I'm not going to hurt you." He said, but I shook my head, grabbing it when the world started to spin.

"But you do! You always do Damon! And it _hurts_ so much!" I cried, falling back into the chair. "Oh my god, Maria, how could I just move on without mourning?! I'm such a bitch, an ugly whore! They were right, I'm just hideous!" I cried, looking back at my hands. They were covered in blood- it wouldn't go away. Suddenly Damon gripped my lower arms, looking me dead in the eye.

"Lani I need you to calm down." He said, my whole body trembling. I didn't dare say a word though. "I need you to tell me what's wrong." He added, and my eyes widened again.

"What's wrong? What's wrong?! What's wrong is you just killed my friend Damon, and for what? Because you were upset?! So what, who's next? Elena? Stefan? Me? Who's next Damon? Who else has to pay because you're so upset?!" I demanded, ignoring the sudden tension in his grip.

"You need to calm down right now." He said darkly, but I tried to fight his hold.

"No, you need to stop it!" I shouted, but then a thought crossed my mind. "Did you do it?"

"Do what?" He asked, sounding annoyed again.

"Did you kill Maria?" I asked, and his face went somber. "I remember it all Damon, you said I wouldn't, I wouldn't remember anything! But I do, why Damon? You promised it wouldn't hurt!" I cried, the grip on my arms getting tighter.

"Lani, please," He said, letting one arm go to grab my chin and force me to look at him. "I can make it all go away, just give me your ring and we can be better." He said, and I could hear the desperation in his tone.

"We can be like before Lani." He added, this pained look flitting across his face, but I shook my head.

"Never," I said. "We could _never_ be like before. And you can lock up everything I know, and feel, but I will_ never_ forget how much of a monster you are." I growled. He looked at me as though I had shot him, and in a mental sense, I probably had.

**_SNAP_**

My eyes widened, and both of us looked to where Damon was holding my arm. It was bent where there wasn't supposed to be a joint. He had just snapped it in half. Both of us looked back to each other, and this crushing pain broke through me. I covered my mouth as a scream broke through my lips, Damon dropped my arm and looked at me with wide eyes. He reached out to touch me.

"Lani-" He began, but stopped when I backed up, tripping over Ric's body in the process. He stared down at me, and I let the tears fall as I wallowed in grief.

"What's going on?" I could hear Stefan's voice, and when I looked up again, Damon was gone and Stefan was right there. He saw my arm, an muscle jumping in his throat as he bit his wrist and put it to my mouth. I swallowed, albeit greedily, because in the liquid fire there was something else, a thin wall of glass that helped ease the pain and scars as well.

Looking down to my raw hands, I no longer saw the immense pools of blood. It was normal again, but the feelings hadn't left.

I'm so sorry Maria.

"What happened?" Stefan asked, but before I could reply, the craziest thing happened.

Ric began to gasp for air.

I must've lost my wee mind by now.

We both launched at him, checking him over. Ric looked up to me, confused as us, but then he looked to Stefan.

"Where's Damon?" He asked, but we ignored him.

"Did Damon turn you?" Stefan asked, and I looked at him, mortified. He glanced at me quickly before turning back to Ric. The older looking man shook his head feeling his body, his healed chest, everything.

"No, it's something else." He said, and then he looked at his giant ass ring. "It was Isobel." He said, looking at the ring.

"She gave you that?" I asked, and he nodded. Frowning, I tilted my head to the side before sighing. "I've been drinking too much." I muttered, sitting back on the hardwood floor. Ric looked at me, confused.

"What happened after I blacked out?" Ric asked, making me frown. Stefan looked at me, also frowning.

"Ash, what did Damon do to you?" He asked, probably referring to my had been broken arm. I shook my head, fresh tears threatening to break through.

"I..."

Yet I couldn't say it, I could barely speak, so Stefan knowingly wrapped his arms around me, and he let me cry it out. There was no way in hell I could say it out loud, but I knew. Somewhere along the road I had fallen for him, and somewhere along this night...

I had lost my best friend.

* * *

**Okay... so now I think Lani and Damon have been at rock bottom for long enough, no? I think so, we need to add some pep pretty soon!  
**

**Hmmm so who is mystery girl I wonder...? Ha of course I know, but do you?  
**

**By the way guys, up top is a song and the artist each chapter. I usually try to put a new song, but I sometimes will repeat it if I think the song fits the chapter really well! It's usually the song I've been listening to on repeat while writing this!  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: Who do you think Mystery girl is?  
**


	25. The Next Chapter

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** ''Bloodstream" -Stateless  
_

_**Chapter** 25  
_

_"The Next Chapter"_

* * *

_I couldn't tell you how many times I've woken up in Damon's bedroom. There are countless times I've woken at annoying hours too, for one reason or another. _

_Yet out of all those times, never had his room looked like this. _

_Out the windows was this white vast of nothing. Yet a natural looking light filtered inside as a breeze blew around. It blew across my bare back as I nuzzled deeper into the mattress. Everything felt so soft, so serene and calm there. Nothing like the drunken mess I had fallen asleep as. My nude body was covered only from the waist down in white silk sheets, but I wasn't looking at anything but him really. _

_His eyes were so beautiful as he stared at me. He looked so calm and serene, I just had to reach out and touch him, so I did. He smiled softly at me as I gently cupped his cheek, smiling. I let it drop a moment later with a bigger smile._

_"You're warm." I said, making him chuckle. _

_"You're cold." He said, but I just chuckled. We both knew that was a lie. He was only a foot away from me, yet he felt so far. _

_"I've never dreamed of you before." I said, watching his dazed eyes stare back into mine. _

_"I know, I was watching." He said, but I didn't bother asking what he meant. Instead, I scooted closer until he was barely an inch from me. _

_"So, what do I owe you for such company?" I asked, but he just smiled, never a smirk. His hand cupped my cheek, but then his fingers drifted down my jaw and neck, over my shoulder and down my spine. They continued until he touched the small of my back, and I sighed softly when he pressed down onto it. _

_"I don't know what to do with you Lani." He said, making me snort a bit. _

_"Whatever do you mean?" I asked, feeling oddly relaxed. Damon smiled, pressing me against him, his bare chest warm against my breasts. I bit back a gasp as he grinned. _

_"You worry me a lot." He said, but I stopped smiling. He raised a brow, so I explained. _

_"Truthfully, I'm so upset Damon." I said, and that sad look came back. "I always wanted to be with you, near you, but you kept pushing me away. And I feel like, now that Katherine and Madison are out of the picture, I'm just your sloppy second choice." I said, and he smiled a bit more before leaning over to kiss my forehead. _

_"You want to know what I think?" He asked, and I nodded. He sighed, looking above my head and then back to me, my body curled up against him as he cranked his neck to look down at me. _

_"I think, that any man who catches your attention, will be the luckiest man in the world. I think, you can honestly do so much better than me." He said, looking solemn, but I shook my head. _

_"There's no such thing as not being good enough for someone Damon, it's all a matter of what you put into the relationship." _

_His eyes softened then, and I crawled up and onto him. He laid on his back as I straddled him, my hair falling around me like a curtain as I smiled at him. _

_"In all honesty Damon, I'm not sure I deserve you." I said, making him look at me, confused. A small chuckle escaped my lips as I leaned down to softly kiss his forehead. When I leaned back, he was looking at me, intently. _

_"I'm a quitter," I said, being frank. "I never try too hard for something, because I'm afraid if I do, I'll just hurt myself in the process." I said, drawing patterns on his chest before looking back up to him. _

_"I think, that between the two of us, it's you who can truly love someone. I'll bet the woman who loves you the most, who catches your eye and keeps it forever, I'll bet that woman, will be the luckiest woman. I've watched you Damon, you loved Katherine for 145 years, and really wish it did work out for you." I said, frowning. Damon frowned, sitting up and looking me in the eye. _

_"I want somebody to love you Damon, I want you to love them too, because I know you deserve it. I know you've done horrid things, and I know you will do it again, but I want you to be happy." I said, and he gulped softly, looking all around my face. _

_"I keep hearing about what you want for me," He said, gently brushing back my hair from my neck. "But you never let me say what I want for you." _

_I tilted my head up as he gently kissed me neck, but body relaxing in his hold as he gently kissed me all over. I sighed softly. _

_"I want," He began, laying me back on the bed as he kissed my shoulder. "You to live a happy life," He said, kissing between my small breasts. "I want you to find friends who will never hurt you." He said, kissing my belly, making me sigh as he streamed his lips up to my other shoulder, kissing and nibbling softly. _

_"Damon.." I whispered, he had to stop, he couldn't want those things for me. _

_"I want you to own a big house, and drive some really nice cars," He said, and I gasped when he bite on the junction between my neck and shoulder. My eyes rolled back as he continued on. "I want you to have a lot of beautiful kids." He added, and I felt his fingers slipping the sheets pooled around me away, his hands holding my bare thighs. I groaned. _

_"And a man," He said softly, kissing my cheek, my heart sunk when I heard that. "I want you to find a man who will love to hear your strange views on life. I want you to find a man who could make your world brighter, someone who could love you as much as you deserve-" _

_"Damon!" I shouted, and he stopped everything he was doing. Looking up at him with wide eyes, I watched his adam's apple bob as he swallowed. My fingers grasped his shoulders as I sat up, my forehead touching his. _

_"I don't want that Damon." I said shakily. _

_Not if you're not there._

_"Then tell me Lani," He whispered huskily, his lips brushing against his ear. "What do you want?" _

_Looking deeply into his eyes, I knew, I knew no matter what happened, it would always be Damon. It always had been, hadn't it? _

_I leaned forward, tentatively brushing my lips against his. He kissed me back softly, but otherwise didn't move a muscle. Smiling, I leaned in for more, this time taking the time to apply pressure, to actually pull our faces flush. It had to have lasted for at least a minute, but it felt like the world had halted for a moment. _

_His hands reached up to hold the back of my head, my own locking into his hair. Pulling back for a moment, I saw the smile on his face and lost it. We both pressed forward, mashing our faces together with such desire. It took a while for us to get it out of our systems, I was the one to pull away first.  
_

_"I want you to be greedy with me." I said, barely a hoarse whisper. He heard it though, gently kissing me again.  
_

_"That would be too cruel." He whispered, but I just gave a start and smiled. Pulling away, he looked deeply into my eyes.  
_

_"That's fine, we can be greedy with each other then." I said, and he gave a soft look at me, cupping my cheeks with both hands.  
_

_"You really think I can make you happy?"  
_

_"I think you already know the answer Damon."  
_

* * *

I awoke to him brushing my face, his knuckles smooth against my jaw. My eyes opened, and they landed on him, sitting there. He seemed to be in a daze, because he didn't move a muscle as I stared at him.

"Damon?"

It was like I flipped a switch, and he went to move.

"I never meant it!" I shouted in panic. He stopped, looking over to me with a confused expression. Great, I had just wanted to stop him... crap.

"Never meant what?" He asked, but I got out of bed to stand next to him. He looked down to me, and I knew one wrong word would make him snap.

"That we could never be what we were before." I said, and he studied my face. "I'm mad, yes, and it's going to take a while for me to get better, but Damon, I never want to lose you." I said, gulping a little as his eyes got softer.

"I don't want you to love me Lani." Damon said, making me frown.

"Why?" I asked, to which he frowned, before holding my face in both his hands.

"Because everything, everyone who's been around me dies. In one form or another. And I could never forgive myself if that happened to you too." He said softly, but I pushed his hands away.

"I'm not Madison." I snapped, making him look confused.

"I know." He said, but I shook my head.

"I'm not Madison, I'm a lot scarier. I'm not afraid of whatever you throw at me Damon. But unlike Madison, I'm fragile. I can't keep playing games. So one day- not right now- but someday soon, you have to choose. You can push me away and get upset, or you you can let me try, Damon."

He stayed quiet, watching me.

"But ultimately," I said, looking down for a second before looking back at him. "It's yours too." I said, and he watched me for a moment. He leaned a little closer to me, slowly closing the gap. I couldn't help it, my eyes drifted to his lips, memories of the dream flitting across my eyes.

Then Maria's blood corpse did too.

His intense blue orbs brought me back though, and I felt numb.

He kissed my forehead softly, a soft murmur of a noise escaping his throat.

"Okay Lani. Okay." He whispered, and then just like that-

He was gone.

I sniffled, holding back the tears with rapid blinks.

Well, there goes my temper.

* * *

Spending the day at school, teaching, it got my mind off of things, well for six hours it did. When I got home though, my thoughts kept on filtering in again.

So I sat, reminiscing on my unstable and probably pathetic live as I double knotted cherry stems. I spat my tenth on into a bowl, staring into the fireplace as I sprawled across the couch.

"Why are you so gloomy?"

A chuckle broke from my lips.

"I'm still mad at you, remember?" I countered as he walked in front of my view of the fireplace. Looking up, I was met with those beautiful blue eyes again, and quirked a brow.

"I know," He said, smirking. "But like you said, nothing lasts forever."

I smiled, shrugging.

"But it will last for the night." I challenged, and he raised a brow. "And yes Damon, that includes in my dreams." His brows furrowed at that.

"How'd you know?" He asked, but I just pressed a finger to my lips. A grinned spread across them as I silently lock them with my fingers and threw away the key.

"I'm mad, remember? Ask me when I'm not." I said, popping another cherry into my mouth. I spat the pit into a bowl, before double knotting the stem and spitting it out too.

"How long will that last?" He asked, leaning closer to me, but I just shrugged. At least I could count on Damon to be Damon still. It was a relief he hadn't changed, I actually kind of liked it.

"We'll see." I said with a grin, but the sound of footsteps made us both look up as Stefan walked in. He looked between the two of us, and I rolled my eyes.

"It's all good Stef, you get to see you brother for another day." I teased, and he gave me a small smile.

"Hey, for the record-"

Damon was cut off as someone came crashing through the window. I leaped up, eyes wide. Damon was pinned to the wall as Stefan was stabbed with a piece of shrapnel. Without even thinking about it, I grabbed one of the chairs and slammed it over Stefan's attacker's back. She let out a cry, the chair breaking on impact. Turning to me, she smirked.

"Well well, we meet again Madison." She said, and I rolled my eyes.

"You have no idea how over this complication I am." I spat before glaring. She fell to the floor, Stefan stabbing her in the back with one of the chair legs. He must've hit her heart, because she turned grey and her veins clutched to her skin- seeking revival. We both turned to Damon and his attacker, seeing them standing apart. The man took one look at all of us, and then at his dead comrade, before leaping out the open window.

"What was that?" I asked, a little hysteric as my voice rose a couple octaves. I turned to look at the two of them and shook my head. "What now every vampire in the world hates you guys?" I asked, amazed.

"I knew them," Stefan said, looking to Damon. "I recognized them from 1864."

Damon shrugged, but although he was playing nonchalant, I knew there was a fatal flaw. She called me Madison- but wait wasn't Madison alive? If she was, then that meant that they might not actually be from the tomb- oh but Stefan recognized them- ugh my brain hurts. Good night.

"She called me Madison, Damon." I said, furrowing my brow. He looked at me and frowned, before looking to his baby brother.

"Yeah," He began, looking at the broken window. "About that..."

We both turned to glare at Damon.

This was not going to be good.

* * *

_Life's a bitch, isn't it? _

_It's one of those bitches that are just so damn interesting- we follow them around and are extremely fascinated with them, yet we have no logical answer as to why. We just go through the motions because, well honestly, what else can we do? _

_Life also has this thing called loopholes, you know, those points in someone's logic where everything just gets washed up and you go under? They're also escape routes, a way for you to run away from your problems- an out if you will. _

_These loopholes are there so that nobody is forced into anything. We can do as we wish, what we want to do is not impossible, just a pain to reach. Loopholes are also created through our choices. Everyone has choices, and I hate when people say they had no choice in a matter, but that is not true. _

_We will always have choices- just not all of them are right. Then again, none of them are wrong either. It is ourselves who hold distinction over which is which, but it is life which shows us whether or not that will help us in our goals. _

_I say all of this, because I think I just found a loophole in my own logic. I am not going to be like most girls, I am not going to sit around and pout because I don't have a prince charming on my arm. I am a strong woman, and as much as Damon means to me, I will not wait forever. It's frustrating, but I know I would regret it more, sitting around and waiting for his answer (which will probably never be written out as clear as day for me) than moving on and living. _

_Because the only mistake I believe anybody can make, is counting the number of breaths you take in life, waiting around for things to happen. _

_I think it's the number of breaths that are taken away from you that matters. _

_Ah, I think I found another loophole..._

_Damon takes my breath away..._

_Fuck. _

_I'm going to stop now._

* * *

**Everybody!**

**I'm so happy to announce this story has more reviews than any of my others!  
**

**Go me, right?  
**

**I never even realized how long it was. Here I was thinking everything was going way too fast!  
**

**Serious guys, thanks so much for reviewing, I get all giddy when I get them! I get perma-grin from it, and my aunt always asks me if I've been sniffing glue.  
**

**Okay maybe a little...  
**

**Just kidding, but seriously, I can't thank you guys enough!  
**

**Okay before I forget, I want you guys to know that if Axel were played by an actor, he would probably be played by Jackson Rathbone. I honestly didn't even realize the guy played Jasper from Twilight until after. And if you haven't noticed I really hate twilight, especially the books... the movies were actually better...  
**

**Anyway.  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: I have been told this story is addictive, and I honestly really try to make it different, but what is your favorite element to this story? What's your favorite scene so far? This will really help me get a grasp at who's reading!  
**


	26. The Lengths We Go

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** ''Teeth" -Lady Gaga  
_

_**Chapter** 26  
_

_"The Lengths We Go"_

* * *

"I say we bust down the door and kill the idiot who attacked us last night."

"Then what? Turn to the rest of the house of vampires and say, 'oops, sorry.'?" Stefan asked with a sarcastic tone.

"We could always just burn the house down during the day, they won't be able to run then." I offered, Damon smirking at me. Stefan rolled his eyes before glancing at me.

"Ash don't encourage him." He said, Damon frowning to his baby brother.

"Why not?" He asked, opening his arms up and gesturing to Elena and myself. "She's on my side, Elena's on yours. I think I know who's winning this argument." He said with a bit of bite as he wrapped an arm around my shoulders. Rolling my eyes, I pushed him away, he quirked a brow at me.

"Damon I'm not on your side." I corrected.

"So you've chosen Team Broody? All that frowning is not good for wrinkles~!" He said in a slight sing song tone. I shook my head, but I couldn't help the smile smile that creeped onto my lips.

"Nope, not with them either."

"Then you're on your own?"

"I'm Switzerland. I'm neutral."

"You're stupid."

"Would you guys stop bickering!" Elena complained, and we both turned to her with raised brows. "And stop doing that eye thing, both of you!" She said, and we looked at each other with furrowed brows.

"What's she talking about?" Damon asked, but then he smirked and did the very thing she hated.

"Not a clue." I said, mimicking him. Elena sighed out irritably, Stefan holding her to try and calm her down. A small laugh came from my throat as Damon sat on a leather chair.

"When are you going to get over the fact that I turned your birth mother?" Damon asked, and I remembered being filled in just a few hours ago by Elena. The full story- and no, I wasn't overly surprised Damon turned her.

"Actually Damon, I've come to terms with the fact that you're a self focused psychopath that has no regard for anybody around you." She snapped, and I looked at him with a shrug and grin.

"She's got you there." I said, and he rolled his eyes, then I looked at Elena. "You are going to have to accept it Elena. Shit happens." I said, and she let out another exasperated sigh.

"Sometimes you two make me so cranky...!" She said, burying her head into Stefan's chest. I chuckled, but then looked up as Bella walked into the room. We all went silent as I got up and walked over to her. Bella's chocolate eyes landed on Damon, and she glared.

"Bella," I began, and she looked to me. "I haven't seen you all week. Why were you ignoring me?" I asked, but she just pursed her lips and motioned for the door. Confused, I glanced at my friends before walking out of the house with her. It wasn't until we were a decent distance away that she began to talk with me.

"You are aware Sheila Bennett passed away, correct?" She asked, and I nodded. "I've been spending my days training Bonnie on Sheila's behalf, forgive me if I was ignoring you Ashi."

"I was surprised, I thought you were all stronger." I said, and she looked to me.

"It wasn't strength we needed, Sheila was meant to pass that night, by spell or not." Bella said, a sad look crossing her features. "It's a sad day when a witch dies for a vampire."

"Bella!" I said sharply, ashamed of her beliefs. "I accept you for what you are, and I know asking you to do the same is harsh, but please, keep it to yourself if you're going to bash my friends." I scolded, but Bella just rolled her eyes.

"Oh please," She began, but then trailed off and looked at the road we were walking along. "I have to return home, there are a few things I need to check up on. You promise to keep safe?"

"Of course," I began, but then stopped suddenly. "Say Bella, have you seen a woman who looks a lot like me around lately?" I asked, to which she looked at me with wide eyes.

"What do you mean?" She asked hoarsely.

"A girl, who was dressed in Victorian style clothing spoke to me the other day, I was drunk so I don't remember the conversation, but she seemed to want to talk to me. Have you seen her? I really want to know who she is." I said, and Bella nodded.

"I will try to look into it, but in the mean time," She began, holding out her hand. I placed mine beneath hers, and she dropped my vervain soaked ring in it. "This will keep you safe."

"Thank you." I said, slipping it on.

"I want you to never lose your focus Ashi, because nobody can decide your future but you." She said, holding my face with both hands. I smiled, and she hugged me tightly for a moment before we both let go.

"Thank you Bella, for helping." I said, and she nodded. "I guess I'll see you some other time?" I asked, and she nodded.

"Goodbye girly." She said, and I was surprised when she pulled out a giant blue rock.

"Whoa wait, what are you going to do with that?" I asked, and she grinned at me.

"It's a port key, I can get back to my home in seconds with this puppy." She said, and I laughed a little.

"Goodbye Bella."

"Bye Ashi." She kissed my cheek before the rock glowed, and then she was gone. I blinked, standing there for a moment, before I started to walk again.

"You aren't being fair."

OH MY GOD!

"You scared me shitless!" I scolded, glaring at the red haired woman. She smiled widely at me, watching me carefully.

"I have that effect on people." She said as though it were a good thing.

"So do guns and vampires," I muttered, going to keep walking. "Well it was nice chatting-"

"Do you really think you can play games?"

I stopped walking. Come on legs, move! Don't talk to her, she's just scaring you shitless for the fun of it. Yet despite my saying this to myself, my legs betrayed me and turned my body around.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, her smirking.

"You know, I wonder how long he'll watch over you. I was hoping you could replace me, but clearly you aren't good enough if you keep playing this game with his mind." She snapped, and I rolled my eyes.

"Who are you? And for the record, I have been honest from the start." I said sharply, but she sighed and remained calm.

"You're a lot brattier than I thought you would be too. Maybe you can't replace me, you'd do better to replace Katherine." She muttered, making me frown.

"Madison?" I asked, and she looked up to me. "Are you Madison Corral?" I asked again, and she smiled.

"I suppose you can call me that, if you want, Ashlan Corral." She said, giggling. "I really do love that name, I wish it were mine. Lani, Damon always calls you that, hmm? How cute."

"Okay back up. If you're Madison, why haven't you gone to say high to Damon? Aren't you supposed to be head over heels with him? I mean the guy is still that way for you y'know." I said, but she shrugged.

"It's complicated."

"So is life, but I'm still here." I said, and she sighed again- god she did that a lot.

"I would love to talk to all of your friends, but I'm afraid saying hello again would be complex." She said, scratching her head. "He wouldn't think of me the same way anyway."

"Why?" I asked, crossing my arms, she looked up to me.

"Because you're here." She said as though it were obvious. "I doubt I mean as much to him anymore." She muttered afterwards, making me frown.

"You never know until you try."

She chuckled to that, and we stood there for a second. I noticed she wasn't in her usual Victorian attire now, trading it in for jeans and a black long sleeve. With her hair cut and tied in a loose braid it went to about her hips, and she looked a lot more like me than before.

"You're a very interesting person Lani," She said with a grin. "I have a good idea why he loves you so much now." She added, before she turned to walk away. I stared at her, confused- then she paused and glanced at me.

"Please, promise not to hurt him?" She asked, and I shook my head.

"I won't."

Not on purpose, not to that degree.

She smiled.

"Thank you Lani, I hope you and Damon are great friends again."

I turned around for a second, and then went to ask her what she wanted- but she was gone. Wait, where the hell did she go off to now? Jesus Christ people needed to stop running away on me!

And now it's raining.

Fanfuckingtastic!

Running back to the house, I ran inside, but was already soaking wet. As I kicked off my shoes and shimmied out of my drenched sweater, Damon came around the corner frowning.

"Have you seen Stefan?" He asked, but I frowned before shaking my head.

"Where did Elena go? Maybe she's with him." I offered, shivering slightly from the draft going through the house. Damon grabbed his phone and dialed a number. A few seconds later he frowned and glared at it.

"She's not answering. I'm going to head over there," He said, but then paused and looked at me. "You're coming too." He said, grabbing my arm.

"What? I'm soaked! What if Stefan comes back?" I asked, but he shook his head.

"I'm not leaving you here alone, you're vampire bait." He said, pulling me along with him. Giving up, I ran with him to his car and slid inside. He started the car and drove the moment he could. During the ride, I felt like I was going to turn into a popsicle with how cold it was. Damon glanced at me, sitting there in a drenched tank top and jeans, and he touched my arm. A frown graced his lips.

"You're at a normal human temperature." He muttered, but then slammed on the brakes. I looked at him, brow furrowed.

"What are you-" He moved before I could finish what I was saying though, at a speed I could barely register. The only thing I did get was the door opened, the trunk slammed, and then Damon was back in the car with a bag.

"What is-"

"It's Elena's, Stefan borrowed my car a few days back and she left it in here. You might be able to fit some of her clothes." He said, and I nodded before grabbing it and opening it with shaky hands. My hands were wet, so they slipped from the zipper, but I opened it after fumbling for a moment.

"Jackpot." I muttered, pulling out a sweater, and dry jeans too. Without even thinking about it, I undid my seat belt and began to strip down to my undergarments. Looking over, I saw Damon was watching me with a smirk. I rolled my eyes, smacking his shoulder.

"Perv." I muttered, but otherwise pulled on the dry clothes. I was taller than Elena, with broader hips, but with my size my breasts were small, so the shirt fit me, but it showed a bit of mid drift. Same with the jeans- I was just happy the button did up, even if they were ridiculously tight. They were dry, that's all that mattered.

"Here," Damon said once I was dressed again. He handed me my phone that was sitting on the seat before. "Call Elena, she's ignoring me still." He said, and I went to call, but I didn't have any luck either. He must've been listening, because he frowned.

"I'm sure she's alright Damon, I'll bet she and Stefan are just..." I paused, chuckling. "Busy."

He didn't seem to take the humor in it though, a permanent frown on his face.

"I really hope you're right." He said, pulling into Elena's driveway. He was out in a second, running to the porch. I too ran after him. He knocked on her door, and she opened a second later.

"You're ignoring me." He said flatly, but Elena ignored him and looked at me.

"Hi Ash, how are you?" She asked with a smile. I walked in, but Damon spoke before I could.

"Is Stefan here?" He asked, but Elena frowned.

"No, I thought he was at home?" She looked worried all of a sudden. Damon and I looked at each other.

"He went out to feed, and never came back." Damon said, and my eyes got a little wider.

"You don't think-"

"Mh hm." Damon said nodding.

"What?" Elena asked, looking between us both. "What's going on?" She asked.

"You're not going to like what I'm thinking." Damon said.

I had a feeling that went for all of us.

* * *

"Axel please! It's for Stefan!"

"Nope, I'm not budging."

"It's fine if you don't want to help, but I really need to-"

"I can't do that."

"Why?"

"Because they'll kill you Ashi!"

I rolled my eyes, Axel could be so dramatic some times.

"Come on! This is for Stefan! He's my friend, and last I checked he was yours as well." I said, glaring at him. He looked down to where he was pinning me to the wall, and then backed up a bit, frowning.

"I can't let you do it Ashi, you're going to get yourself killed. And I'm not leaving knowing you might follow and do something stupid." He said, and I frowned.

"So you're going to let him die?"

"If it means keeping you safe." He said, and I shook my head.

"I'm going with or without you Axel," I said sharply, turning for the door. He tried to grab me, but I turned and glared at him. "Don't make me." I warned. He let me go and looked to the sky as though praying. When he looked back at me, he nodded.

"Fine," He said, walking away to grab his jacket. "So where are we off to?" He asked, making me grin.

* * *

"So what's the plan?" I asked when we walked into the History Classroom at the school. Damon glanced up at me, then glared at Axel behind me.

"Come on guys, it's Stefan." Elena said, making the two look away from each other.

"Okay, now that we have vampire number two in our group, this is the plan." Damon said, leaning over Alaric's desk. I raised a brow as I watched the history teacher look down at a paper- since when were these two on not killing each other terms? Weird.

We all crowded around the table.

There was an array of weaponry splayed across it.

"Whoa, somebody's got a lot of spare time on their hands." Axel muttered, but I nudged him in the gut.

"Here's what we'll do," Damon began again, looking at Alaric. "You get in the house, and get me and Asshole in. Once inside I want you to get out as fast as possible. From there we'll get Stefan out, and ourselves out." Damon said strictly, making me frown.

"What about me?" Elena asked. "I'm going too, I can get Stefan while you distract them!" She said, and I rolled my eyes.

"Look out of the two of us, I can actually defend myself." I said, spiriting my fingers in front of my face. Damon glowered at Elena, and then me.

"No, you're going to make sure she doesn't do something stupid." Damon said sharply but I wouldn't back down.

"Damon I get that you're worried about us, what use am I if I can't help my friends?" I asked, frowning.

"Me and Ash can team up! We can- we can go together." Elena insisted, but Damon glared at her, snapping his fingers.

"I could've snapped your neck right there." He said. "That's how fast it is to get yourself killed. I can't protect you both when I'm inside, neither can boy toy." Damon said, glaring at Axel.

"I agree with shit face," Axel said, grasping my shoulder. "You guys should stay in the car."

"But I can help!" Elena insisted, making Damon roll his eyes.

"Fine, you can drive the getaway car." He muttered as he, Alaric, and Axel all grabbed some weapons before they stormed off. I looked to Elena, pursed my lips, and then followed them out.

I had a better plan though.

* * *

It took a little while, but I finally convinced Damon to drop me off at the Boarding House.

"I'm just going to grab some vervain flowers." I had said as he followed me inside the house. "Really, you can get in the car." I added when I noticed Damon was hounding after me. He didn't leave though, so I turned to frown at him.

"I know what you're going to do Lani," He said, getting up in my face. He cupped my face in his hands before frowning, shaking his head. "Which is why I can't let you do it." He said. I frowned as well, what was he-

The next thing I knew, I was up in his room, sitting on his bed. My ring was in his hand, and a solemn look was on his face.

"Damon don't-"

"You will not leave this room until I tell you to Lani." He said, looking me dead in the eye. His pupils dilated, and my own widened.

You little-

He kissed my forehead, before pulling away.

"I could never let you get hurt." He said, before backing away and vanishing out the door. I ran to it, but before I could get into the hall, my legs stopped working. I stood there, as though there was a glass window in the doorway.

"Damon!" I called, but there was no answer. They were probably already gone too.

"No, you can get hurt too dammit! What about you?! Who's going to protect you?!" I screamed, but I knew nobody could hear me. I leaned against the wall next to the door, and slid down to sit.

"You're noisy."

I jumped, looking over to the hallway.

Madison.

"Why do you show up at the worst possible times?" I asked, frowning. "Scratch that, why are you bothering me?"

"I told you, you're an interesting woman." She said with a wide smile. She looked at the door frame, brows drawn together. "You know, you don't have to listen to him." She said matter-of-factually. I stood up and looked at her, tilting my head to the side.

"What?"

"Don't you know? You can break his compulsion." She then smiled, and added. "I broke his all the time."

"What do you mean? Damon wasn't a vampire when he knew you." I snapped. "And how do I break said compulsion, Miss Madison?"

"Ah, you know so little," She said, and I rolled my eyes at her talk. "Cute, but you can break it. If you can remember what it was he stole from you, you can bring it back you know."

"I can?" I asked, confused. She nodded.

"Compulsion is just a vampire shoving his beliefs onto you. It's the same as brainwashing. Just a quick scrub and they can shove all those disagreeing thoughts into the back of your mind, but it's still there. If you can remember what it is you lost, it can still be found." She said, mimicking my stance of leaning against the door frame.

A frown covered my lips, and my brows were pulled together again. Break it? Remember? I suppose that was why I could remember my fit with Maria, why I had had a panic attack- it had all come rushing back, and I hadn't been ready. Could I fight the compulsion for me to not leave this room then? Testing this theory, I nodded.

"What do I do?" I asked, and she smiled.

"Close your eyes," She said, and I obeyed. "Now, say what he wants you to say."

"I will not leave this room until he comes back."

"Good," She said, and I felt her hand brush my hair back behind my ear. "Now say what you want to say."

"I will- I will- not leave- I-"

"Don't strain, just think. Think about why you have to break it." She encouraged, and I bit my lip in concentration.

"I will... I will not let my friends get hurt...I will protect them...So that's why...I will... leave... this-this... room!" My eyes snapped open, and I looked right at her wide ones. She grinned at me, before offering me her hand.

"Was that so hard?" She asked, and I shook my head. It wasn't, if you really think about it, it was actually quite easy. I took her hand, and took tentative steps towards the door. My foot passed the threshold, and I gleefully leaped out of the door. Madison embraced me as I leaped at her, grinning.

"I did it!" I squealed, and she laughed.

"Yes, you did darling." She chuckled out. When I pulled away, I saw her watching me tentatively, so I raised a brow. She seemed to realize what she was doing and pulled away.

"I must go, and you should too. You won't be too far behind them, just a few minutes." She said softly.

"Thank you." I said, smiling. She too smiled before turning the corner.

"Hurry now." She said softly, and then I couldn't hear her at all. I nodded, running down the stairs and to the basement to grab some vervain. From there I was racing around the house to grab things, and then I threw it all in my car. When I got in, I grabbed at the ignition for the keys-

They weren't there.

Damon!

I wonder if his original plan was to let me free and take my car keys, but he probably thought it was safer in his room. Frowning, I kicked at the car a few times before biting my lip and getting out. Pulling off the cover, I reached underneath the car and grabbed at the wires.

Too bad Damon.

Bad girls don't play fair either.

* * *

I moved quietly while I prepared the house.

Damon was making more noise than I was. So as I hid on the second floor- able to get up there thanks to the music- I waited for the opportune moment to begin. They dispersed suddenly, running everywhere but up the stairs. My scent was washed away with the rain, but I knew if I didn't keep calm my heartbeat would give me away in an instant.

One vampire stayed behind, a younger looking girl, but I wasn't swayed by her. She hurt Stefan, she had to pay. So I leaped over the banister, and landed on top of her. The stake in my hand going for her chest. It hit, because she stayed on the ground, grey and veined. Looking around, I waited for anyone else to come into the room. Nobody did though, so I snuck into the room they had all been sitting in before. Thank god this house was big, or I'd be screwed. The stereo was playing, and I got the idea to turn it up to full blast. It was so loud it hurt my ears, I didn't want to think about what they were thinking.

The irony, _Teeth _by_ Lady Gaga_ was playing.

Without wasting time, I jumped up onto the wall unit next to the door. A vampire came in, and concentrating, I gave him an aneurism. He collapsed, and I waited for the next to come in. As long as I stayed up here I could keep hitting them and stake them together. However, as the next vampire- the one from the other night- went to walk in, he was suddenly swept from my view. I jumped down from the wall unit, and staked the vampire on the ground before glancing around the corner.

Three vampires were ganging up on one.

Damon.

A sort of feral feeling curled through me when I saw two flip him over. A growled left my throat as I rounded the corner and flung my stake at one of them. It went flying and- amazingly- hit one in the chest. I glared at the other one, using the ring to make him collapse to the floor. Sniffling, I felt my face as a liquid came out of my nose. Frowning, I looked at the blood, but then glared at the last one standing.

Damon looked at me as though I were a ghost, but I spun around in time to see another vampire drop to the floor. Ric was standing there with one of his homemade weapons handy.

I jumped when somebody touched my shoulder, and I spun around to punch, but Axel grabbed my arm and glared at me. Alaric went into the side room and turned the music down. Damon stood up and glared at me.

"How the hell did you get out?!" Damon asked, incredulous as he sniffed my neck. "Are you on vervain?" He demanded, but before I could answer I saw another vampire come at him from behind. I glared, and he dropped to the floor, but the room suddenly got lopsided.

"Whoa, Lani! Focus!" Damon said, snapping his fingers in front of my face. I stood upright, wiping the excess blood from my nose before looking around.

"Did you find Stefan yet?" I asked, and Damon nodded. "Great, we should leave." I said, walking to the door.

"Wait there might be more." Ric said, and I nodded.

"I know," I said, pulling out a lighter with a grin. "That's why I brought this." I said, making Damon and Axel frown.

"How do you think this is going to work?" Axel asked, avoiding the use of the word lighter or gasoline.

"I covered it with vervain and lemon juice. It's still potent." I said. Both boys nodded, and we all walked out. Before coming into the house I had let one jerry can spill in through the back door, and another from the stairs. Vampires couldn't smell it over the vervain, or lemon. It would easily be mistaken as a woman's perfume at this rate.

Lighting the flame, I leaned it against the coated front door and watched it ignite.

"Boom." I muttered as we fled off the steps. A few cries broke out as the house went up in flames- I knew we got at least a half dozen vampires still in there, hiding. The rain had stopped, letting the fires spread through out the home even after the roof began to cave in.

"Uh, guys." Ric said, and we all turned to look at him. He pointed to the woods, where a dozen other vampires we coming from.

Oh fuck.

"This is why I wanted you to stay at the house." Damon muttered, but I shook my head and grabbed his hand.

"At the risk of sounding cheesy, I wasn't going to let you die alone." I muttered, smiling lightly when he squeezed back. Axel looked down at me, frowning.

"Nobody's dying today, none of us at least." He insisted, and I looked to Ric with steeled eyes. He looked at me, then Damon, and then the slowly closing pack. With nowhere to run, we just stood there.

"That whole thing about finding my wife, that was a lie, right?" Ric asked, Damon nodded. I chuckled.

"Low blow." I said, but he just shrugged.

"I'm not human, so I don't care."

"Said the man holding my hand." I muttered, but then I looked down to his wrist and got an idea. "Give me your blood." I said. Damon frowned at me, and I looked him in the eye.

"What?" He asked.

"If I drink it, I can use the ring for longer durations. We can make a break for it if I knock them unconscious." I muttered, and Damon looked around us- the vampires, Ric, me, vampires- he bit his wrist and held it out for me. I drank greedily for a moment, before pulling back and looking to the six vampires. I glared sharply, thinking hard.

One fell.

I glared to another, and he fell just as quickly.

Two.

My head started to spin, so I grabbed Damon's wrist and drank some more. Another vampire flashed towards us, but I glared and he fell down mid run, and then another charged but Ric shot at him so I had time. I glared at another, but I must've been getting weak because he kept coming forward.

"Lani, it's okay." Damon insisted, but I shook my head and glared. Trying to take him down. He wouldn't go down though, and now Axel was shaking my other shoulder.

"Ashi, you're going to hurt yourself." He insisted, but I pushed him off.

"Kill the last one," Ric said. "Kill him or she'll die trying!" Damon disappeared before stabbing at them with a stake as I tried to bring them down. They fell, and I instantly felt the pain sweep through me. Axel caught me as I fell, and sat me down on the grass. It was wet, so was I, and cold too. I shivered, clutching my nose as it poured blood. It didn't work, and I had to turn over as blood gushed out of my mouth.

Damon was next to me in a second, and he bit his wrist before putting it to my mouth. I drank, looking up to him as I did so. When I pulled away, he cupped my face and watched as my nose stopped gushing blood and I didn't feel like vomiting anymore.

"What's going on here?"

We all looked as a woman came marching up to us, that girl- Anna I think- was following her.

"What's going on here is your pack of tomb brats spent the day torturing my little brother." Damon spat, standing up to glare at her. She looked upset and embarrassed then.

"I assure you those responsible will be dealt with." She said, but Axel shook his head.

"A little late Pearl." He said, and she looked at him with wide eyes.

"Axel, I was never informed you were in town." She said, and I frowned, glancing between him and her. She looked a bit more guarded then, a little wary of his actions.

Was she afraid of him?

"Of course not, I rather keep it that way." He said, and then glanced down at me. "I'm sure you know," He began again, looking back at her. "What happens when your friends do unkind things." He said sharply, and she nodded quickly.

"Please," Anna spoke up. "We had no idea. I swear." She insisted, and I stood up. Damon and I shared unbelieving glances, before looking back at Axel.

"I suppose," He began, his tone completely different from before. "Don't let it happen again." He said. His tone was driving me nuts. It wasn't rude, but actually overly polite.

From the way Pearl and Anna reacted though, he was obviously lying.

They rushed into the house then, and Damon and I shared a look again before he walked over to me.

"You okay?" He asked, and I nodded.

"Yeah, I'll live." I said, smiling. Axel looked at me, this strangely calm look in his eyes, before he began to walk away. Turning I ran after him.

"Axel," I began as he turned. I grinned and hugged him tightly. "Thank you. Thank you for coming to help us." I said, and he smiled at me before ruffling my hair.

"No problem." He said, and then he started to walk. Turning around, I ran to Ric and hugged him too.

"You too Ric, thank you." I said, and he smiled before he too started to walk back to the car. Turning around, I saw Damon was also walking away. Raising a brow, I trotted until I caught up to him and matched his pace.

"Where are you going?" I asked with a small chuckle. He looked upset though, and then it dawned on me. "Are you jealous?"

He pinned me to a tree in seconds, glaring at me.

"No I am not jealous that you just touched that nasty bastard." He said clearly, and I laughed.

"Aw you're too cute." I said, and he looked to the sky as he moved away.

"For the love of God I am not-" I cut him off though as I grabbed the back of his head and pulled him to me. His lips met mine and I smiled when he pushed me back into the tree. He pulled away for a second to look over my face, and then he was pushing our faces together as though he was trying to mold them into one.

I gently pushed him away, but he insisted on giving me a few small kisses before he completely moved away, and he looked at me with half lidded eyes.

"Thank you Damon, for looking out for me." I said, kissing him once softly. "And I suppose as a reward I could stop being mad at you." I said with a smile. He looked at me, smirking, before softly kissing me again.

"Hmm, I like friendly Lani," He said, kissing me again. "She knows how to say thank you."

I chuckled, but then we both pulled away and started jogging for the car.

Well, a pretty good way to wrap up a shitty day if I do say so myself.

* * *

**Wow guys, I'm so pumped that you guys like this story so much! I'm trying really hard not to make it cookie cutter, because let's be honest- no relationship is picture perfect! It's got it's own shape, some sides crumbling too! Y'know?  
**

**So Mystery girl has made two appearances! Hmmm, Madison you say? I wonder... why is she tagging around? Oh man, I cannot wait to reveal why, you guys will be shocked, trust me.  
**

**I hate to say it, but I actually forgot I had Axel in the last scene :( so I was skimming through, adding and editing a bit, which is why he didn't do anything too major... and it's 3,000 words that I really don't want to rewrite...  
**

**Speaking of Axel, why do you think Pearl and Anna were scared of him? I know why!  
**

**By the way, all of this was written immediately after my last post, can you say fucking amazing?!  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: What is the question you want the answer to the most? Eg: Why is Madi here? It'll give me an idea on what to focus on a bit more!  
**


	27. The Bond Is Too Strong

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** ''Miles To Go" -Stateless  
_

_**Chapter** 27  
_

_"The Bond Is Too Strong"_

* * *

"What is all this?"

I looked up as Stefan walked into the kitchen and smiled. Shrugging, I waved the knife around to point at everything I had cut up and begun to prepare.

"I figured you and I haven't talked a lot lately, and I wanted to know how you're doing." I said, and Stefan nodded as he walked into the kitchen. He smiled at me and looked around. I gestured to the bar stools on the far side of the counter, and he sat. While I continued to cut up different items, Stefan began to talk.

"So what exactly are we doing?" Stefan asked, and I shrugged.

"I figured we could have dinner and you could tell me why Damon is having a meltdown about you drinking human blood." I said, and he frowned when I glanced at him.

"Damon's not upset that I'm drinking blood." Stefan insisted, and I raised a brow. "He's upset that I'm drinking blood while you're in the house."

The made me chuckle a little, smiling as I brushed all the cut up vegetables to the sides and went to turn the pan on. I planned to make a steak and veggie hot salad, but it wasn't like I was a famous chef, so if nothing burned I would be on high.

"See I think you're wrong," I said, walking back over to smile at Stefan as I leaned against the counter. "I think that Damon is just worried his baby brother can't control himself, that he'll fall to the grief."

"How deep is this buried?" He asked, I snorted before going back to the pan with a hand full of veggies and began to fry it up.

"Think what you want Stefan, but you and I both know," I paused, turned and looked at him with pursed lips. "If he really hated you as much as you say he does, he would've killed you after you killed Madison."

Stefan gulped, but then nodded. I returned to what I was doing, adding a steak to the mix.

"It really is uncanny," Stefan said, and I glanced at him with a raised brow. "Your resemblance, your attitude. Sometimes I forget you're not Madison." He said, and I looked away, a frown appearing on my face.

"Stefan," I began, my brows knit in concentration. "Tell me, what if Madison hadn't been dead all this time? What if, let's just say, she was hiding all this time and never came to see you both? What if she was a vampire right now?" I asked, glancing at him. His brow furrowed as he looked down at the table, thinking. Then he shook his head and looked back at me.

"I don't think my opinions on you would change, but Damon?" He paused, frowning. I knew the answer then, and decided not to push. He answered anyways though. "I don't think his would either." He said, and I looked at him, confused.

"She would be in the same boat as Katherine, she abandoned him Ash, I don't think he could see her the same even if he wanted to." Stefan said, but I shrugged.

"A first love will stay with you Stefan," I said sighing as I leaned against the counter. "Trust me." I said with an eye roll. Stefan quirked a brow at me.

"Who was yours?" He asked, and I smiled and did the eye thing Elena hated so much. It was then that Stefan put two and two together with wide eyes.

"Really." He said, almost disbelieving. I shrugged, walking over to the counter he was sitting at. "How?"

"Your guess is as good as mine." I said airily. "And no, it's not because of some insanely amazing charm of his." I added with a smirk.

"Most people fall for the charm and run at the secret." Stefan said with a grin. I shrugged before turning to grab two glasses from the cupboard.

"Odd, I fell for the secret, the charm just kind of tagged along I guess." I said, grabbing the bottle of white wine I had found and unscrewing the cork.

"When you say 'feel for the secret'...?" He began, and I shrugged.

"Well no, I actually had a heart attack when I found out, and it didn't help that I had pissed him off pretty badly..." I began, but Stefan frowned.

"How did you two meet?" He asked, and I laughed.

"Fully story? I went to my boyfriends birthday party at a bar. Damon was there, we had some psycho talk about life, and I guess meeting him made me realize there are people who can get my insane views on life, so I dumped my boyfriend. The next day I met him on a walk and we talked, and then Bella warned me about him, saying he was a monster, so I said she had to prove it." I said, and Stefan nodded for me to continue.

"So anyway, I met up with Damon and he bit me, pretty badly if I might add, but since I was spiked with vervain I managed to escape. After that, I figured running from a homicidal vampire like Damon was a very bad idea, so I asked to meet with him. He made it quite clear he wanted to tear my innards out of my body, so I planned to stake him in the alleyway. Only problem was a group of vampires from the last town he had been at attacked him, so I staked the last vampire before he could kill Damon. I guess one part of me saw that as a bargaining chip, another thought- he's too interesting to let him die- and so I carried his unconscious ass home, and he said I was free." I finished before downing the white wine in my glass.

"That was a lot of talking man." I said after swallowing, Stefan nodded, this weird looking smile on his face.

"You really are something." He said, and we clinked glasses before downing it's contents.

"I'm a one of a kind." I muttered, before putting down my glass and walking to the stove again. "So about this blood drinking. Are you sure you can handle it?" I asked, but when I looked over to him I knew he had just put a wall up.

"Definitely." He said, and I frowned.

"You don't have to lie to me Stefan, I'm just trying to help." I insisted, but he shook his head.

"Everything is under control."

"You said that like a robot Stefan, I don't buy it." I muttered, taking the steak off the pan and cut into it. "What I'm most worried about is it consuming you Stefan, Damon told me you spent so long fighting who you are that you didn't learn how to control it." I said.

"Everything is fine, Ashlan." He said firmly, but before I could reply, I winced. My finger had slipped, and a small nick was on my finger. Blood seeped through the small crack, so I went to the sink to wash it down.

"I'm just worried about-"

Stefan was right behind me now, and I could hear his labored breathing then. My heartbeat sped up when I felt one of his hands curl around my shoulder. Glancing down, I saw the knife, still in view, then I closed my eyes and took a breath.

"Stefan," I said warningly. "Let me go. Now."

Instead, he launched forward, and I let out a cry when he bit my neck. Wide eyed, I grabbed the knife and swung behind me. He let out a hiss as it hit his shoulder, but it gave me enough space to run away. Not looking back, I dove for the basement, locking doors as I went. He caught me before I got to the room, so I spun around and glared at him. He fell to the floor, groaning and growling, so I ran into the room with the vervain flowers and grabbed a bunch, holding onto them.

"Ash," Stefan began, looking at me through the bars. The pained look on his face told me he had come back to his senses. "I'm so sorry." He said with a shaken tone and bleary eyes. I shook my head, biting my lip.

"Trust me, I understand. I've put up with a homicidal vampire for months, remember?" I teased but he just shook his head. "Now," I began again, getting his attention. "I'm going to come out, and we are going to sit down and have a talk." I said, but he shook his head.

"You're safer in there."

"I'll bring some flowers." I said, grabbing some more and rubbing them over my neck. "Now stick your wrist through the door and let me drink. I know you're not that good at pretending." I said, and he did so hesitantly. He probably knew I was coming out one way or another. I drank, but only a tiny bit, just enough to heal me, before he backed away from the door and let me out.

"Now, let's talk about this... issue."

* * *

The basin was covered in blood by the time I cleaned my shirt.

Of course I had to be wearing white.

Go me for timing.

By the time I had scrubbed the living shit out of my shirt, I realized that the stain would probably never leave, so I sighed and rung it out, before tossing it in the trash can.

"What happened to you?"

I glanced to the doorway, Damon raising a brow at me. I just shook my head though, and continued to scrub at my neck that was covered in dry blood.

"It's nothing." I insisted, frowning at the mirror image of Damon. He glared at my back, but then he was right behind me. I watched him in the mirror as he looked down at me.

"Who bit you?" He asked again, and I took in a breath.

"I think you know who."

It was like I lit a fire in those eyes then, but before he could leave I turned and grabbed his arm.

"Damon please, beating him up isn't going to help him." I insisted, but he shook his head, frowning.

"He bit you Lani. Let's not forget how your blood realize now that you will always be his prime target, right? He's going to come after you again." He said sharply, but I shook my head.

"Not if you're there to protect me." I offered with a small smirk. His brow furrowed in frustration then, but he didn't say anything as I continued.

"Look, he has a huge problem controlling this hunger. The only way we can help him is by supporting him Damon. I can't see him getting through any other way." I said, and he pursed his lips as he looked me up and down. His arms curled around my waist, pulling me in as he rested his head on mine.

"You do realize you're making me work."

"Eh, I'm worth it."

He chuckled, and I held him as well for a moment. His head dipped down then, and he sniffed my pulse. I licked my lips, anticipating.

"Was it hard?" I asked, and he hmmed in reply, though he seemed to be in a slight daze. "When you first drank my blood, was it hard to stop?" I asked, sighing as he grabbed my ass and lifted me to sit on the counter top. He pulled away, our heads at even height now, a dark look in his eyes as he looked at me through half lidded orbs.

"It still is." He muttered, but I heard him despite being lost in the blue eyes trapped behind a curtain of black lashes. I gulped, and his eyes flickered to my throat when I did.

"Why? What is it like? Why is it so hard?" I asked, Damon looking me in the eye for a second, he gulped, then he shrugged.

"It's like... drinking water after not for days, like living on broccoli and then having cane sugar." He whispered, leaning in to kiss my neck. "It's so hard, especially because I know what it tastes like, it just gets harder to ignore it." He said against my pulse, I wrapped one of my hands into his hair, and he pulled back to look me in the eyes.

"What's it like, to be a vampire?" I asked, our noses caressing against each other, our lips barely an inch apart.

"Take the most intense feeling you've ever felt." He whispered, our lips brushing softly.

"Mmmm." I said, my eyes watching his lips.

"That's a bland day for us." He whispered, his tongue darting out to take a long languid lick on my bottom lip. It was hard to concentrate on what he was saying.

"What about right now?" I asked, and he smirked at me as I leaned forward to bite his bottom lip and pull it away. When I let go, it made a slight popping noise, making me smirk a bit too. His face moved next to mine, but he curled to keep watching me as he looked me over.

"Every single we feel, it always goes back to the hunger. The desire to kill and feed." He whispered, but he didn't move. "Right now, I want to bite you, and I don't want to stop." He said honestly, making my smirk fall.

"What are you thinking?" I asked, tilting my head the opposite way of his. He was so distracting right now, it was hard to form coherent sentences. Damon licked his lips, and my eyes darted to them when he did, and then I looked back into his half lidded eyes.

"I'm thinking..." He whispered, getting so close there was barely room to breathe. "...I want you."

I leaned forward a bit more, licking his bottom lip again, and this time he pushed forward and pressed his lips to mine. My hand went to cup his cheek as he tangled one of his hands into my hair. I went to pull away for air, but he meshed our faces together again. The world spun around me, and the next thing I know, my back is hitting the mattress in his room.

A smirk graced my lips as we parted, just long enough for me to tear off his shirt. He dove back into me, our tongues dancing as my fingers curled into the grooves of his stomach. He gave a grunt, before leaving my lips to leave soft kisses from my earlobe to my shoulder. I sighed, momentarily stopping.

His hands caressed my stomach, lifting my shirt up and over my head. I sighed as he continued to kiss down my stomach, smirking as he gently bit my hip.

"Look at me Lani." He said between kisses, and I stopped curling my back into the air long enough to look down at him. He smirked, and I watched with a heated look as he gently ran his teeth over my hip. I let out a soft cry, the very thought of him...

He launched back up to me, kissing me forcefully, but I just giggled as he nibbled on my earlobe. His hands were roaming all over me, mine skimming over him. He grunted every now and then, foreign noises coming out of my own lips too. Then his hands landed on my bra, and he pulled away to look at me with half lidded eyes.

I knew the unasked question.

"I trust you," I whispered, softly kissing him. "I trust you Damon." I whispered.

"We can stop whenever you want to." He said softly, but I shook my head.

"No," I whispered, kissing him again. "I don't think I want to." I said, and he pulled away to look at me.

"Lani," He whispered, looking me in the eyes. "It's going to hurt." He said softly, but I just smiled. Damon leaned up and kissed my forehead, before pressing his there.

"I trust you Damon."

I really did.

* * *

**Whew!  
**

**So I hope you guys like me!  
**

**This story is rated T though, so no actual sexual scenes!  
**

**Maybe for a one shot if I get bored but...  
**

**IDK, I've never been overly wowed by writing that stuff, it's actually really boring to write (though I understand why it's fun to read.) So yeah, not a lot actually happened in this chapter.  
**

**Well nothing pertaining to the plot.  
**

**I really hope you guys like this chapter, I wasn't sure it was going to be enough, buuuut I think it'll do, neh?  
**

**Like I said before, Lani never had a price on her virginity, it was just that she wanted it to go to somebody important to her. So there you have it, her first love, ain't that sweet?  
**

**I tried to make her and Stefan bond, but Stefan and his broodiness is horrible to write. I literally got bored half way through... thank god for clutzy people like Lani!  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: ****Wow, a lot of you seem to hate Madison! Why?**


	28. Here Comes The Bang

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** ''The Only Exception" -Paramore  
_

_**Chapter** 28  
_

_"Here Comes The Bang"_

* * *

"You're brutal." I muttered, looking at my neck in the mirror. Damon stirred in the bed, but I didn't move as I stared at the wound on my neck.

Last night had been... strange. I never thought I could do that with somebody, I never thought it would actually feel as good as it did. Yet I did, and I wanted to do it again and again. With Damon, everything held more meaning.

"What..?" Damon muttered as he groggily came into the bathroom. I laughed, usually it was me waking up late and futzing around.

"The bath's ready." I said, and he glanced at the bath before chuckling.

"A bath in the morning? Where's the champagne?" He teased, but then he probably saw the bottle sitting in a bucket of ice. Then I saw his eyes landed on me, and they zeroed in on my wound. He looked confused for a second, and then it seemed to dawn on him.

"Lani," He said, coming up behind me. I sighed as his arms encircled me, enjoying the feeling. "I didn't..." He began, sighing into my hair.

"It's alright," I said, intertwining my fingers with his. "I think it actually gave you the leverage in this case." I teased, and he chuckled faintly before reaching his wrist up and bit it. I let a little bit drop in my mouth before pulling away. The throbbing on my neck ceased as I hopped into the hot bath. Sighing, I leaned back and raised a brow at him. He glanced at the water, before dipping a finger inside.

"That's way too hot." He said while retracting his fingers quickly. I raised a brow, chuckling. It wasn't hot enough as far as I was concerned.

"Looks like my temperature gave me some leverage too." I teased, and he shook his head while smirking. Leaning over, he gave me a kiss before pulling away.

"How do you feel?" He asked, but I shook my head.

"A little surprised, I didn't think it would be so..." I trailed off, trying to find the right words. Damon's brow furrowed as though he were worried.

"So...?" He encouraged, but I grinned.

"Satisfying." I teased, and he smirked back in response. "Though I am a little sore, it was a bit much for me." I said, feeling like giving him an ego boost. He leaned in to kiss me, and then stood up. I raised a brow, but he just started to walk away.

"I'd rather wait than have my skin melted off my body." He said, and I rolled my eyes when he walked back out to grab some clothing. I laid back, enjoying the feeling of heat wrapping around my sore body, ignoring the fact that it was almost noon.

"The Founder's party wind up is today, right?" I asked, listening to Damon shuffling through stuff in his bedroom.

"Yeah, it starts soon, so don't melt away in there." He called, coming back into the bathroom. I chuckled, before sliding out of the water to grab my shampoo and conditioner from the shower. Damon met me half way, coming up behind me and holding my waist.

"Ah! You're cold!" I screeched, trying to wriggle from his grasp, his jean were cold too, not helping one bit.

"I know," He teased, smirking into my throat. "I just love to watch you squirm."

"Damon!" I cried, laughing as he tickled me. "Too much! Damon!" I screeched again, and he let me go. I leaped into the tub, enjoying the heat as I did so. He smirked at me, but made no move to get closer.

"I'll be back later, hopefully you're not too sore that you can be ready by then?" He asked, smirking like usual. I rolled my eyes, but figured bruising his ego wasn't a very nice thing to do.

"I'm a fat lazy bitch, but I think I'll manage." I said, and he snorted, but then his smirk dropped and he left the room suddenly. A frown rolled onto my face, but then he came back with my cellphone and put it next to the champagne.

"Try to stay away from Stefan," He said softly. "He's getting even more on edge lately." He said, but I shook my head.

"If someone didn't antagonize him every second hour..."

"I'm serious Lani, if anything happens..." He began, but I just stood up and held his face in my hands, smiling.

"I'll call." I said, before kissing him. We parted, Damon leaving shortly after that. Sinking back into the tub, I tried not to think about what was going to happen today. I was just going to take it ooonnnneee step at a time...

I'll think about it once I'm out of the tub...

In a few hours...

* * *

"I can't believe you took the whole day to get ready."

I rolled my eyes at Damon. He gave me a look, and I just turned to Stefan sitting in the back seat.

"Stefan! Damon's being mean to me!" I whined, making Stefan chuckle and Damon roll his eyes.

"Now now kids." Said Stefan.

"She started it." Damon whined, but I stuck my tongue out. "Don't make me turn this car around young lady."

"You're such an old man!"

Stefan rolled his eyes at us, but didn't say much else until we arrived at the Lockwood mansion. We all walked in, and I linked arms with Stefan and Damon.

"Now boys, be polite gentleman and please, don't embarrass me." I teased before running off.

"I think we should be worried Stefan." Damon joked as I flitted through the crowd. I almost tripped a few times, Damon insisting I wear high heels to the event and a green one shoulder cocktail dress. I thought I looked pretty with my hair up in a bun and a few strands falling down, my bangs framing my face, but I also felt over dressed. Dresses in general- cocktail dresses to be more specific- held too much space for me to show skin.

Where are my leggings when I need them?

Dammit.

"Well look at you," I turned around to see Axel grinning at me. "Can dress you up and take you out, huh? That Salvatore is a lucky man." He teased, and I frowned.

"Why are you acting so bitter?" I asked, and he shrugged.

"It's nothing, I just, I dunno. It's complicated." He said, following me to the bar. I took a drink, and we settled down outside.

"Nothing's simple," I countered. "Not unless you force it to be."

Axel shrugged, and I realized his demeanor was off. The usually calm and collected Axel seemed bitter about something, but I couldn't figure out why. I reached for his hand, and he looked to it before looking at my eyes.

"Why are you so upset with me?" I asked, and he snorted before pulling away, lifting his drink to his lips.

"You chose him when you were supposed to choose me." He said before downing the glass in one go. I frowned, shaking my head, so he put his glass down and glanced at me.

"I met this girl," He said. "She was, ordinary by so many standards. Yet not. She was spontaneous, active, wild, and funny. The best part, was she made you feel alive too." He said, and I nodded for him to continue, not sure where this was going. "And she told me, that she wanted me to be happy above all else." He added, a light I hadn't seen in a long in his eyes.

"Who was she?" I asked, but he shook his head.

"Shhhh, where was I? Oh. Yeah she, she made me happy. Really happy, and then one day, someone else swept her off her feet." He said, staring off into the distance. He snorted, shaking his head. "She said she was sorry, she never meant to hurt me. So she said, 'You will find happiness Axel. You will be happy in your future.'." He said, looking me dead in the eye.

"Who was she?" I asked again, but this time he didn't blow me off.

"Your mother, Lani." He said, making my eyes widen. "It was your mother."

"S-" I couldn't even form a single word. "H-" My brain just wouldn't work. So... Axel had known my mother? He had loved her and she broke his heart?

"I know," Axel said, shaking his head. "It's a lot to take in."

"Yeah," I said, nodding vigorously. "But why didn't you tell me?" I asked, frustrated. Axel shrugged. "Tell me." I insisted, and he chuckled.

"She never took no for an answer either." He said, before sighing. "I didn't tell you, because Aurelia told me I would be happy with her daughter. She told me her daughter would be everything I needed, everything I wanted." He ended, looking at me funny. I felt awkward sitting there, and looked away for a moment.

"Oh."

Great reply Lani.

"She was right you know," He said, and I turned to look at him with furrowed brows. "You're everything I want Ashi."

My head started to shake then, and he laughed a little bit.

"Wait, how did you know I was my mother's daughter? How did you find me int he first place?" I asked, confused. Axel smiled, shrugging.

"She told me, her daughter's name would be Ashlan Corral, with blood red hair and grey eyes that were so light they shone in the dark. She's not the prettiest girl around, but she's definitely not ugly." He said, making me frown.

"My mother died when I was young, and even if she didn't I've never met her since." I countered, and he sighed.

"That's a complicated question Ashi, one I can't give you the answer to." He said, but I frowned.

"But-"

"No," He said, resisting. "Aurelia even told me, I must never tell you."

"What? Was she psychic or something?" I asked, but he shrugged.

"She was friends with witches, they probably helped her out." He said, grabbing my drink and downing it. I looked at the ground then, biting my bottom lip.

"I'm sorry," I said, not looking at him. "I can't be your everything."

"I know Ashi," He said, and then I looked at him. He looked sad, but I knew he understood. "You can't be mine if you're already taken, huh?" He said, making me nod sadly.

"You are very important to me Axel," I said, smiling. "But I refuse to lead you on. I refuse to be like Katherine, and I refuse to play games with you." I said, sighing.

"I know Ashlan, you were always straight forward and honest with me. So I'll be honest with you." He said, but before I could open my mouth I caught Damon walking towards us. I stood up, but then turned to Axel.

"What do you-"

"I'm not sorry for this." He said.

Then he kissed me.

My eyes widened, and at first it felt like I remembered, that strange feeling washing over me. I almost kissed back, but then it felt like my back had hit a wall, hard. My hands grasped his face as I tried to pull away, and I pounded on his chest.

There was a second where the world spun, and then I was standing next to Damon a few yards away. Axel glared at him, but I just stood there, stunned.

"I'm never going to be sorry for that Ashi." He said, and then he was gone. Damon went to go after him, but I grabbed his jacket.

"Damon I-I'm sorry, I never meant for that to happen and I swear I-"

"I'm not made at you," He growled, his eyes were intense as he glared at me. "But I am going have to kill him now."

"Look as much as I'd love to accept your demands, for starters he is my friend." I began. Damon quirked both his brows before pursing his lips.

"Hmm, yeah, try again." He spat, and I shook my head.

"He also has information on my mother." I added, but he rolled his eyes and went to turn around. There had to be something I could say, something to save Axel's ass- even if he didn't deserve it- but what?

"He also might have information on Madison." I spat out in a hurry.

That stopped him in his tracks.

He looked over to me with furrowed brows.

"Madison is dead." He said firmly, but I shook my head.

"Anna said different," I said in a rush. "She said the last time she saw Madison, she was in transition." His brows were practically knitted together, so I continued. "I was going to tell you, but I wanted to make sure, so I asked Axel, and he said- yes, he saw Madison too while she was in transition in 1864."

"But she never ingested vampire blood." He countered, his voice hoarse. I nodded.

"Anna said she was slipped some vampire blood by Katherine, I guess as a victory flag over her head for winning both of you over." I said slowly, not daring to look away from him. He took a few steps closer to me, his lips pursed as he tried to control his anger.

"Please Damon, just don't kill him." I begged, and he stared at me for a little while longer before he nodded. Not another word escaped his mouth as he turned away from me, slowly walking away.

I decided to leave him there, because chances we he was only containing his anger for me. If he killed Axel? I would probably not forgive him, and he knew that, so I figured Axel was safe so long as I still liked him.

Despite how much I wanted to rip his head off...

I left the party then, not wanting to be in the midst of the noise. My legs carried me home, along the road. You would think more cars would've passed by, but I didn't see many, and instead I was left alone in the dark.

"You're a very cruel woman. You know?" She said, but this time I didn't jump. Instead I rolled my eyes and turned to face her.

"What do you want? Because clearly you're just here to fuck me up so badly that I chase Damon hell knows how far away from me." I said, and honestly, I was getting tired of her. She smiled, looking me up and down.

"You look really pretty Lani." She said with a smile. I sneered at that.

"That's getting off topic." I countered, and she rolled her eyes.

"I'm not fucking you up Lani," She said, and I raised a brow. She laughed. "Contrary to your beliefs, I'm actually a very important person to your survival." She said smiling, and I leaned against the tree beside me.

"Okay, whatever you say." I began, but then looked to her. "So tell me, how am I related to you? Did you ever have any kids?" I asked, and she smiled.

"Yes, I had a daughter." She said, and I raised a brow.

"Before or after Damon?" I asked, and she she shrugged.

"Before." She said, but I frowned.

"You don't seem to like Damon as much as Stefan described you to." I said slowly, and she smiled.

"That was a long time ago Lani, things change." She said, and I sighed.

"You're telling me, Axel's not the same as before." I said, and she raised a brow.

"No?"

"Nope, he's this jealous weirdo now. And he won't back down, it's making me like him less and less." I said, frowning. She tilted her head to the side, and leaned against the tree opposite of me. We both slid down the trunk until we were sitting on the ground.

"Tell me, why do you love Damon?" She asked, but I shrugged.

"There is no such thing as a list with Damon. I love him, and I love all of him. That's it. I couldn't even begin to go into detail on what I think, we'd be here all day you know." I said, and she smiled, making me laugh. "Sorry, it's weird talking with your mirror image about the guy you both love, loved, whatever."

She pursed her lips, giggling slightly.

"I'm sure one day you're going to be a very happy woman." She said, grinning, and I raised a brow.

"Really." I said, disbelievingly. She nodded and I shook my head. "Doubt it, with you running around, I don't think Damon and I could work out." I said, and she rolled her eyes.

"You didn't have to tell him." She countered, I snorted.

"Yes I did, I can't lie very well to Damon, eventually it all just comes rushing out without me thinking." I said, and she smiled.

"You love him more than I ever could."

"I dunno about that, you fought for him, I admire your strength." I said, and she shrugged with a giggle, making me raise a brow.

"We'll see, I know you love him more though."

"Why's that?"

"You'd die for him."

It went silent for a moment then, and I frowned. She got up then, and held out a hand. I accepted it and she pulled me to my feet. We smiled at each other, and then I looked to the ground.

"I guess." I said, biting my lips. She grinned at me, before reaching into her back pocket. She produced a tiny silver pocket watch that was on a closed chain. The watch looked like a pendant. Looking up at her from the jewelery, I watched her smile at me.

"I want you to have this," She said, making me raise a brow. "It's a special necklace." She added, motioning for me to turn around and move my small strands of hair as she put it on. When I turned back around, she was smiling even more at me.

"What is so special about it?" I asked, and she held the locket in her hands.

"When you feel like there are no more answers in the world," She began, looking deeply into my eyes. "When you think there is no hope," She added, I wondered if my gaze was as sharp as hers was, it made me shiver. "Just open the watch, and your answers will be there." She said, smiling. I quirked a brow, but she just leaned up to kiss my forehead.

"But how do you know?" I asked, and she smiled.

"I didn't spend 145 years waiting for nothing Lani." She said. "I think you are the perfect choice, even if if you don't think so. So, if you are happy Damon, I will wish you happiness forever." She said. I blinked-

She was gone.

Frowning, I looked around, spinning in a circle. She was nowhere in sight though, and I was just getting dizzy looking for her, so instead of thinking of the strange woman, I continued on my way home. When I got there, I peeled everything off and took a hot shower, for some reason the heat just wasn't hot enough today, making me frown. I spent the rest of the night catching up on writing chapters to stories, but wasn't feeling it either.

I was walking into the parlor, planning on getting a drink and doing some alone partying, to calm down and live a little- ignore the little green monster telling me Madison was still number one to Damon- when a knock came at the door. I frowned- who the hell was that? I downed a good amount of alcohol, before the knocking got to annoying.

"Coming!" I growled, walking to the door.

"Honestly! What do you-"

"Hi Lani!"

My heart stopped.

"Maria?" I asked, and she smiled at me, but then her face changed and her eyes went dark. Her fangs glinting in the light from the house.

"_Goodbye Lani_."

I gasped as she shoved a stake through my stomach.

* * *

**Whew!  
**

**Okay, soooooo I was wondering how many of you saw that one coming? A lot? None? Hmmm, what on earth is going on guys? I dunno...guess you'll just have to review! Bwahaha aren't I evil?  
**

**So you don't necessarily hate Madi, just the fact that she's there? Hmmm, I wonder why? Is there some deeper meaning? Honestly, I'm bursting to tell you! Oh I can't wait! I dunno how many more chapters there will be, five I think, but I really want to get a few major events out of the way first!  
**

**And since I have been following season 1 so far, why not finish off the same way?  
**

**I've got something devious in mind though, but I'm thinking about how to execute it.  
**

**Seriously, this story has grown so much since I started.  
**

**Fun fact nobody gives a shit about: There's this horse I love named Collani, well Ashlan's name originated from his, but I figured Collani is too german, and too out there, so I was searching for names with Lani in them The best I could find was Ashlan.  
**

**It's getting wicked hard to write Damon, I keep double checking my writing! I am being serious though, if he seems OOC LET ME FUCKING KNOW!  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: So, what's your favorite thing about Lani? Mine is she's not some whiny weak brat making demands left and right like Elena! Any guesses on where this story is heading? I hope not, otherwise I suck at my job!  
**


	29. Into The Sea Where The Darkness Awoke

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** ''Time Is Running Out" -Muse  
_

_**Chapter** 29  
_

_"Into The Sea Where The Darkness Awoke"_

* * *

I gasped as she shoved a stake through my stomach. My mind went blank as she twisted it, smirking, and then disappeared into the night. I fell to the floor, trying to pry the stake out of my stomach. There was barely any strength in me as I pulled it out, gasping for breath.

"Maria!" I called, but it was no use, she was already gone.

She hit too low, nothing vital, just a cluster of nerves in my hip. Fuck it hurt, but the wound didn't go right through like Emily had done when I hit the branch. Dropping the stake I stumbled in to the house. It hurt to walk, but I kept going until I got to my cellphone in my room. I had left a blood trail- definitely should clean that up.

I dialed Damon's number, but it went to voice mail.

"Damon please," I said softly, my breathing heavy. "I know you're mad, but you need to come home. Right. Now." I said firmly before hanging up. A convulsion shook through me, and I stumbled into Damon's bathroom. I needed to clean the wound, quickly, so I leaned against the sink and lifted my shirt up. My left hand was bloody from clutching the wound, and I tried to multitask putting cold water on the spot and dial Elena's number.

Same thing.

"Fuck!" I growled, stuffing the cellphone into my jeans pocket. The sink was covered in blood now, and I winced whenever the water hit my skin. It was so cold, how did people drink this stuff?

Once I could actually make out the flesh from the blood, I carefully got onto my knees to grab the medical box. Wincing, I stood up slowly, trying to open the box with my wet hands. It wasn't working, so I turned to glare into the mirror-

To see somebody standing behind me.

Before I could even blink, they had shoved a cloth over my head, and my hands instantly went to the edge of it, trying to pull it off me. Somebody grabbed my hands though, and held me in the air. I tried to fight them, but then somebody else grabbed my legs and all I could do was squirm.

"Let me go!" I screeched, trying so hard to pull free. We were moving, but I didn't know how far we had gotten.

"You heard her," A deep voice said. "Let her go."

So they did.

We must've been by the stairs, because they swung me over the railing, my back scrapping it, and I crashed into a table seconds later after a long drop. My back cracked against the wood, and I hissed out a few choice words as my wood seemed to be stinging. I think I landed on the alcohol, because something was burning my back. My wound from the stake must be filled with alcohol.

Well, now it's clean.

The sound of someone chuckling brought me back to reality. I had to get up. Now. So I did, and I pulled the blind off my head. Two men were standing on the stairs, slowing walking down to me. A feral growl ripped from my throat, and they hesitated, watching me. Why were they waiting though? I didn't understand what they wanted from me.

What were they waiting for?

"Ha!" One laughed. "She doesn't know!" He mocked, and continued to walk down the steps. I glared, using my ring. He clutched his head then, falling to the floor. The other one though didn't use the stairs, and before I could do anything, he was on top of me, and was pinning me by my neck to the floor.

"Easy boys," A woman's voice said, and I looked up into the eyes of a woman. She had this completely uninterested look on her face. "We need her alive and not so broken."

I tried to struggle, but each time I did he pinned me harder.

* * *

**DAMON'S POV**

Fuck.

This was not good.

The stupid witch had to choose today to show up, and she just _had_ to choose today to see Stefan. We were going to be screwed if he kept this up. That stupid judgy witch was going to try to kill us all if she had the chance now. I figured if poster child Stefan would keep himself in line, Bonnie might have some liking to our race.

Now, we were totally screwed.

"We have to do this." I told Elena when she looked down at Stefan. She had stabbed him with a vervain dart, Van Helsing wannabe supplying the goods for us. Elena looked up to me, frowning. I knew she didn't want to do this, but she had to, it was the only way we could help Stefan now.

Elena nodded, I went to pick him up.

"Come on, open the car door." I said, and she ran to my car ahead of me to open it. Propping him in the backseat, I offered to open her door, but she just crawled in after Stefan, letting him rest his head in her lap. I didn't think about my unconscious brother for a moment, or Elena, I just thought about how to clean up this mess.

Stefan even admitted to it taking a long time to ween himself off the blood last time.

Too bad they don't have group therapy for these kinds of things. I wasn't into the whole sharing thing, especially with Stefan. Locking him up in the basement seemed to be the next best thing. He had to be contained, I couldn't have him running around destroying all my chances to hide the fact that vampires were still here from the council.

Especially now that he had tasted her blood.

"_Not if you're there to protect me._" She had said it so confidently, but as I drove down the road, a frown became evident on my face. Why would you tell me all of that? Why couldn't you just be selfish like you said you would? Would I have been happy you lied? No, but sometimes it was easier to pretend. I had been so certain that I could be selfish with you Lani, and you go do that?

I don't know anymore.

However, I didn't know if Madi was really alive either though. What if Lani was just testing me, using it as an excuse to save that bastard? Fuck I wanted him dead, he should never touch what isn't his, he's going to have to die now.

Now I just needed to ween Lani off of him too.

"Damon," Elena began, and I looked into the rear view mirror at her, quirking a brow. She was holding he phone to her ear. "Did you get a message from Lani? She called but she isn't answering." She said, frowning. I fished my phone out of my pocket too then, and looked at it.

One missed call.

Lani.

I dialed the number, but it went to voice mail. Instead I looked at my own voice mail and listened.

"_Damon please, I know you're mad, but you need to come home. Now."_

What?

What was so damn important she would swallow her pride and call me? She wasn't a very prideful person, but Lani was always above fixing arguments she didn't start. I hit the gas and sped to the house at a much faster rate. Without helping Elena, I raced to the open door as fast as I could.

"Lani!" I called, but the stench of blood was all that greeted me.

Right at my feet was a pool of blood.

My chest clenched.

I followed the trail, droplets on the floor, all the way up the stairs and to my bathroom. The sink was bloody, the taps covered in red, and the medical box was lying on the floor. A growl escaped my throat as I followed the trail back out.

"Damon!" Elena called, and we both turned to see a man lying on the ground in the parlor. He had been behind the couch, I had missed him completely. Looking over, I saw the table holding most of my scotch was broken, the glass tinted red from blood.

Lani's blood.

The world turned red around the edges as I sped over to the man. He was only barely breathing, his ears had trails of blood leaving them- it was Lnai's work, so he must've been apart of a group that kidnapped her.

My heart sunk.

The worst of my fears had come to life.

* * *

**ASHLAN'S POV**

My head hurt.

My body ached.

Fuck my life, it's so over rated.

I was tied up, a blind over my eyes and my hands behind my back. They knew all about my little ring trick now I guess, but clearly they didn't know how I did it, so instead they just covered my head and I tried to pull the ropes apart.

Didn't work.

Each time I did manage to get somewhere, I'd get a sting across my body, like a whip had hit me. Wincing, I would growl, but refused to scream.

"She's a feisty one." Somebody called. A few men chuckled and laugh. I frowned, a growl escaping my throat again. Somehow though, I didn't feel afraid of them, it was like a natural instinct was kicking into overdrive, I wasn't supposed to be afraid of them.

Just extremely angry.

"Let me go." I snapped, and they paused for a second before they all started to laugh. A whip hit me again, but I refused to show any signs of pain to them.

"You don't call the shots, Miss Corral." A man said with such distaste. I frowned, if I hadn't had a blindfold on I would've glared too.

"You better not talk to your mother with that mouth you little shit." I spat, getting three whips in return. I think they broke skin on the last one, my cheek hurting so much I was dazed for a second.

"That's mighty stupid of you, calling out a Predator. You got a death wish?" He growled, a couple of men chuckling.

"As much as you do." I countered, smirking when a few guys chuckled along. There was no whips this time, instead someone grabbed each of my legs and tried to spread them apart.

"Maybe that mouth of yours is whats kept you alive with that vampire so long. Or maybe it's that hot pussy of yours," He chuckled and I paled, but I refused to do anything but growl. "Why don't we find out?" He challenged, and I felt him reach for my jeans. It was then that I fell on my phone in my back pocket and winced- my phone! If I could turn it on I would be able to call Damon.

"Don't you dare." I growled, egging him on. He pushed me to lay down, and I used this to open my phone. Holding down the home key, voice command activated a second later. "I'll call Damon, and he'll rip your throat out you bastard."

The phone dialed Damon's number.

I just prayed he would answer.

"You think that vampire can kill all of us?"

"Wouldn't know, can't see anything you shit." I growled, biting back a gasp when my zipper was undone. "You fucking asshole!" I growled, and stole one of my legs away to kick him, he must've gone flying because I heard the sound of something crashing in the background.

"You're a strong little bitch, have you been drinking vampire blood?" Another teased, followed by an array of laughter.

"How many are there of you?" I asked, and the first man growled, a couple of really painful whips hitting me. I grunted and groaned and growled, trying to keep the noises to a minimum. Little did he know I was almost out of the ropes.

"You talk when spoken to, you little bitch."

"Bite me you sick fuck." I countered, because really, I had nothing to lose being strong. I prayed Damon was listening now, I could get information out of them.

"You do realize that vampire will be dead if he even tries to get in here, right? There's ten of us, but we could take him out with three." He chuckled. "Though he does beat us in age."

"Damon won't have to worry about rescuing me." I said confidently, time I test the waters. A long ring of laughter broke out.

"No? Given up little vampire whore?" He laughed, but I snorted.

"He won't have to rescue me if I kill you first." I countered, undoing the last knot to the ropes. Sliding my phone into my pocket, I stayed still long enough to feel the man leaned right over me.

"How does it feel, to know that your precious man can't save you from me? To know that I will be taking what's only meant to be his?" He asked, forcing my legs apart. I just snorted though, smirking.

"Jealous you can't compete with a vampire? Do you have to rape women because you can't preform to standard?" I countered, and I knew he'd try to punch me, so I lifted my arm suddenly and lifted the blind.

Bulls eye.

I glared at him in the eye, and he gave a strangled noise before dropping to the ground. Standing up from the table I was on, I looked to the only other two in the room.

"Who's next?"

* * *

**DAMON'S POV**

"We have no time to waste!" Elena exclaimed, but I just glared at the witch. There was no way I was going to trust her or her little hocus pocus crap.

"They have her and she's running out of time Damon." She added when I didn't move. She was right, that phone call from Lani only got me so far, and then it disconnected. There was no time, none at all.

"It's just a little blood, if you drank enough it won't take long." The witch said, rather calmly. I scowled at her, angry to have to do this, but I held out my arm for a her a second later.

If it was for Lani, I'd do it.

She smirked, quirking her brows, but otherwise started to work quickly. The map had been put on the table already, and the witch took my hand and cut it with the knife she had. Chanting, she went into a trance as my blood seeped from the wound before it closed up. The blood swirled around, as though trying to find it's owner. It stopped on the town just a half hour away from the boarding house.

"That's as close as you can get?" Elena asked, but I shook my head and withdrew my hand.

"Doesn't matter, it's good enough." I said, making my way for the door, Elena on my heels. Stopping, I looked over to the girl and frowned.

"Hey Judgy," I began, and she looked at me. God I would regret this... "Thank you." My feet took me out of the house so fast I didn't even see her reaction.

I'm coming Lani.

Just hold on.

* * *

**ASHLAN'S POV**

My breathing was starting to get shallow.

Everything hurt now.

I had been running for I don't know how long. The first one went down, but the other two were too much. My nose bled from all the aneurisms I had been doing. I fled from the room the moment they looked away, but more were coming from the other direction. I hid in a dumb waiter, surprised when the thing carried me up two floors without a hitch.

When I was on the main floor, I saw daylight through the cracks of the dumb waiter cover. I heard voices too though, and so I waited.

"I don't think he's interested anymore." One man said.

"Of course he is, she's that woman's daughter, after all." The voice I recognized as the emotionless zombie of a woman. I could hear the sound of sucking, and then she took a breath. Clearly she was feeding, but I tried to bite back any noises as a shadow came across the dumbwaiter door. It flitted by quickly, and then came back again.

Somebody was pacing.

I swallowed when the shadow moved, but otherwise didn't move a muscle.

"Isobel, is this really going to work?" The man asked, making me frown. I could hear her chuckling, just picturing the bitter and dead look in her eyes me me scowl.

"Katherine said that he'd be here, just wait." She said, making me furrow my brows.

Katherine? As in- Damon and Stefan's Katherine? As in- Elena's look alike Katherine?

"I thought she was coming?" He asked, making me frown. Isobel sighed, seemingly bored with the explanations. No really, don't get bored, I don't mind hearing the diabolical plan!

Wait a second- Isobel as in Elena's mother Isobel?

Whooaaaa...!

Hold the phone, I thought she was dead?!

Well I guess technically she is but...

"She's not stepping foot in Mystic Falls until Axel is gone, and we all know he'll follow Ashlan out like the love sick puppy he is, so the sooner Carlson shows up, the better." Isobel said in an off put tone. Then again, everytime she opened her mouth she sounded off put.

"Well he's over an hour late." He spat, and I heard the sound of something being thrown.

"You Preds are so testy." Isobel said, and I could hear the guy growling.

"Don't forget that it's in my nature to kill your kind Isobel, I could tear you to shreds." He growled, but she just chuckled.

"I'm going to go and see what's taking Carlson so long, go check to make sure your men haven't broken her neck yet. We need her alive." She said, and I heard them both walk in different directions. My body stayed locked in position for a while though, I refused to fall into a trap- oh but I needed to get out...

Slowly, I slid the dumb waiter open, and quietly, I landed on the balls of my feet as I crawled out. There was no noise as I slowly tiptoed in the direction Isobel had gone, hoping to high hell there was an exit to the house of horrors.

Thank god, I saw the daylight as I made my way through the door, but I didn't bother being quiet. Instead, I thrusted open the door and ran like a bat out of hell. There was nothing else in my mind but the fear of being caught. My heart pounded in my ears as I ran, my legs hurting as stones cut into the bottom. My lungs felt like they had been overused, but I didn't stop. I couldn't even if I wanted to.

Suddenly, I was tackled to the ground, a scream breaking through my lips.

"You little bitch! You and your mother...!" He flipped me over, and I paled at the sheer strength of him. He wasn't like the others, his bark wasn't nearly as bad as his bite. He had to be as strong as a vampire, he held both my wrists without even trying to my chest as his other hand went to my throat. My eyes widened when he completely blocked my airways.

"You and that woman are so much alike, it makes me sick." He growled, and my eyes widened as his changed. It was like a black ink had bled into his eyes, and then there was no view of his original eye anymore, just this solid black haze. His jaws extended, his skin going grey.

Oh my god what was he?!

His skin chipped a little bit, his face getting closer to mine as he let this inhuman roar slip past his lips.

There wasn't much more he could do though, as he was suddenly knocked from above me. I gasped for breath, rolling over to run away as fast as I could. There was no point in looking back, I couldn't risk using my ring more than necessary.

Someone grabbed my shoulders and I was plucked from the ground. For a second I went to scream, but a hand gently pressed to my lips and I looked up into those deep emerald eyes.

Axel?

Then who was...

Oh no.

A roar brought me back to my senses as Axel pressed himself and me into a hollowed tree trunk. I dared not to even think as the man stalked past us. His skin was a dark grey color now, his jaw extended like that of an animal with large fangs.

A wolf?

No, it looked even scarier than that. His whole head was shaped like a hyena head, the nose wasn't so long as a wolf's.

For a second, I couldn't hear anything but my own heartbeat, and then there was a snap of a twig and the guy took off so fast i could barely see him. We were quiet for a little while, but then Damon appeared beside us in a blur. I went to say something, but Damon pressed a hand to my lips and then tapped his ear. So he could still hear us? Great, fantastic really.

Damon held out his hand, but before I could take it another low growl ripped from the man. We turned to see him just yards from us, glaring.

"A Corral and a vampire?!" He roared, Axel and Damon standing in front of me defensively. "Never." He said threateningly. I gulped, knowing that the worst had yet to come.

"Uh dude, I think you've got some dead skin issues." Axel mocked, Damon giving a snort, but I trembled at him. Damon seemed to notice this, and looked down at me for a second, then turned back to the man.

"What do you want with her?" Damon asked, to which the man snorted.

"I'm just the delivery man, who knows what Carlson wants." He said, and suddenly he and Damon were pinning each other by their throats. Why was this guy so strong? He wasn't like the others, they had been scary and rather strong, but him...

I looked to Axel, my brows furrowing.

"Did you bring some vervain?" I asked, and he pulled out a bottle of clear liquid. I took it, but when I went to take a step he pulled back. Looking up to him, I could see the adamant look in his eyes.

"No way in hell are you going near him." Axel said, and I looked over to see Damon being over powered. Panic rushed through me as I turned back to Axel.

"I've got an idea though." I said, and he frowned at me before looking at Damon who was trying to fight the guy. The speed was too fast for my eyes though, so I turned to Axel and glared firmly, making him look down at me.

"Trust me."

He hesitated, but then sighed.

"Alright." He said, and I whispered my plan to him. While Damon distracted the guy, Axel brought me up onto a higher branch and left me there.

"Hey Wiley Coyote," Axel called, gaining both the boy's attention. I gulped, trying not to look down, trying to ignore all the aches in my body, trying to block out that this day ever happened. "What are you going to do when your parcel turns into a pancake?" He challenged, and both looked up to me. This unbelievable look crossed Damon's eyes, but I couldn't risk nodding at him. All I could do was pray I didn't lose balance.

"You wouldn't kill her." The man said, but Axel smirked.

"I'd do anything to protect her, even kill her if it meant she be free." He said, and my body trembled a bit, I almost lost balance.

"You're lying." He insisted, although he seemed a little panicked. Axel smirked, and I made a moment of eye contact with him as he looked up to me. Feared poured into my eyes as I realized he was going to carry it through.

Oh shit.

"Well then," He began, looking back to the man. "Catch."

He kicked the tree so hard that the base shook, which meant the branches shook, which meant I lost my balance. Axel ran towards Damon, pinning him to another tree as I let out a scream.

"No!" Both Damon and the man screamed, but as I looked to the ground, the man appeared beneath me. I used that last second he was there to open the bottle of vervain in my hands and shoved it into his mouth. His eyes widened as I landed on him and the liquid poured down his throat. Curling at the last second, most of my impact went onto the man, my shoulder breaking my fall.

I groaned, but felt victorious at the familiar sizzling sound as the man fell unconscious from the onslaught of vervain.

"He's a vampire," I whispered. "That's why he's so strong..."

"Lani!" Damon called, and I felt myself being pulled away from the body. Damon was holding me, holding my face, looking me in the bleary eye.

"Damon," I whispered, smiling. "You're safe, good." I said, but just as I did, the man sprung up. His eyes were still black and his face was still in disarray- but I don't understand, how can he- he leaped at me, trying to attack me.

"CORRALS ARE PURE! CORRALS CANNOT LOVE VAMPIRES!" He screamed, latching onto Damon's wrist. My eyes widened as Axel literally slapped his head off, the ball of flesh flying far into the treeline.

"Damon," I whispered, looking to his left wrist as he looked at it. "Are you okay?" I asked, but I watched it healed before he smacked my head. "Ow!" I cried, so he slapped it again.

"Don't you dare do that again!" He said, and I looked up at him. "There was nothing I could do! Don't you ever do that to me again!" He said, and I could hear his voice cracking. Smiling softly, I reached up to hold his face.

"I told you, if you're here I'm safe babes, nobody's taking me away from you." I said, and he looked me in the eye for a moment. The his face shot forward and caught my lips. I smiled softly, kissing with just as much vigor for a second.

Then the headache began.

I pulled away. Damon bit his wrist and shoved it to my mouth, so I drank hungrily. By the time I was done, Axel was tapping his foot impatiently. We stood up and I looked between the two with a quirked brow.

"What?" Axel asked, Damon mimicking me. I giggled at their innocent looks, smiling.

"Nothing." I said, but then I turned back in the direction of that hell hole.

"There's a house up there, is that where they had you?" Axel asked, and I nodded. Damon stood beside me, frowning.

"Let's get you home first, we can talk about it all in the morning." He said, and I nodded before walking in the direction he led me. Despite all the answers I had gotten from Isobel, however unknowingly, I had now also gotten more unanswered questions.

What did Isobel and Katherine have to do with this band of thugs? Why did they say Corrals couldn't be with vampires? What did they want with me? Who was Carlson? So many more questions were flitting across my mind, but as I got into the passenger seat of the car, as I watched the roads go by... eventually the only thing I could feel was the bumps in the road, and Damon's hand in mine.

* * *

**Whew!  
**

**I wasn't thinking this would be such an epic chapter, but it had to come eventually! Into the darkness Lani goes! Everything will be going downhill for her from here, just what is going to happen though? I can tell you there are quite a few things that are going to blow up in her face, one of them is Lani's trust in others!  
**

**What exactly am I talking about? Well review to find out!  
**

**Before I forget guys, I'm going to finish this story and probably wait a little bit to get the sequel in order, because I don't want to give you guys some half assed story! I'm going full steam ahead!  
**

**Also, the woman who would play Lani's role would probably be someone like Susan Coffey, only taller and without any make up... Yeah, I think Susan's too pretty to be Lani, because Lani's an average looking girl in my eyes... maybe you like her hot? IDK, I just fell in love with Susan's grey eyes and red hair.  
**

**Hmm, not much else to say other than thank you to everyone who reviews! I love you guys soooo much! IDK if you guys will like this chapter to much, but this pretty much opens up the waterfall of issues for Lani in this story and the next book!  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: Who would you pick to play Lani? A fav actress?  
**


	30. Answers For The Needy

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** ''Enjoy The Silence" -Aberlin  
_

_**Chapter** 30  
_

_"Answers For The Needy"_

* * *

"Where are you going?"

I turned around, stopping before my hand reached the door. He was staring at me with such an intense look in his eyes, but I just smiled at him. He didn't buy it, so I let it drop.

"I'm going to go and get Axel. We need to talk about a lot of things." I said, but Damon didn't seem swayed.

"Why, so he can kiss you again?" He sneered, and I turned to the ceiling as though praying for a god to shut him up.

"No Damon! Because there are so many questions I need to ask him! Because I'm scared, you do remember what I told you right? About that guy saying he hunts vampires right? Well how many more are there? Axel might know something, I can't leave no rock unturned." I said, making him purse his lips. He knew I had a point, but I also knew his pride wouldn't let him admit it.

"While you're there, I'm going to round up the troops. Seems Elena's uncle is on the council, and I don't like where this is heading." He said, and I frowned.

"Wait, Elena has an uncle?" I asked, curious. He nodded. "Alright, let me know if something comes up?" I asked, to which he nodded again. When I turned to leave though, he grabbed my arm and spun me back.

"Lani I..." He bit back his words though, looking frustrated. I smiled though, and leaned forward to gently kiss him.

"Please trust me Damon, I'm not lying to you." I said, and he frowned.

"Of course I trust you." He said, but I don't think he knew the impact of his words. That made me beam as I leaned in to kiss him again.

"I'll be back around dinner if all goes well." I said, to which he nodded before letting me go.

Now for the real challenge of the day.

* * *

"So how long before your love struck boyfriend let you out of the house?" Axel asked as he let me in. I just rolled my eyes before pacing around his living room.

"I'm tired of this." I said, stopping to face him. He raised a brow, and my voice kept running.

"I'm tired of you two arguing. I made my choice, and I'm not going to play games. I am asking for you to be my friend Axel, nothing more. We can't play games! I'm not like that! Not anymore! I refuse to hurt Damon and you. You are both important to me, and I don't want to lose you, but if I have to, I will leave and never look back Axel. We need to focus." I said, and he pursed his lips before looking to the floor.

"Why are you here?" He asked, looking back up to me. "It's not like you to come and scream at anybody for no reason." He said quietly, making me bit my cheek and sit on the couch.

"What do you know about Predators?" I asked, to which he shook his head.

"Very basic info, I know they and their enemies are so underground only their own kind know how to find them." He said, sitting in the chair beside me.

"What are they? Why was he different? Once he's a vampire, shouldn't he be... less grey and more rawr?" I asked, mimicking a vampire's face to the best of my ability. Axel snorted before shaking his head.

"Your mother knew about predators, she's the one who taught me all about them." He said, making me frown.

"How did she know?" I asked, and he shrugged, making me frown. "So what did she tell you?" I added.

"Predators, she never found out where they came from, but they were created by witches to hunt vampires." He said, glancing at me. "However they had an ability to populate like vampires. And so Vampires had an epidemic on their hands, which is why we do not ever overpopulate the world." He said, and I nodded for him to go on.

"Your mother," He began, looking at me, those emerald orbs shining. "She knew Predators, she knew a group of them, and they kept her safe from all the things that go in the night. Then she met me, and she couldn't befriend me because of what I was." He said bluntly.

"But I thought you said she accepted you?" I asked, to which he chuckled.

"She did, them- not so much." He said, I raised a brow. "Corrals have a special type of blood, Aurelia's blood was also very tasty. However they kept all Corrals away from Vampires. There's actually a history of it, I looked it up." He said, making me frown.

"Why would they do that?" I asked. "Why didn't I know?" I added, making Axel shake his head.

"It's more complicated than just that Ashi," He said, getting up to grab a drink. "As you can see, Predators are a lot stronger once they turn into vampires. Their true nature breaks free." He said, chugging down a glass of scotch.

"And Corrals? What are we?" I asked. "What is in our blood?"

He looked me up and down, but then he frowned.

"Your blood? No Ashlan, I think it's your mind." He said, but then shrugged. "Aurelia told me that the Corral family once saved the Predators from becoming extinct. And as a trade, predators protect the Corral bloodline from vampires. Over time Preds got a corrupted sense that Corrals were god, they could not be touched my hell sunken creatures like us." He said, and I nodded.

"My mother told you all of this?" I asked, Axel nodding.

"Her and... others." He said vaguely, but I was so confused.

So the Corral bloodline was considered pure?

"So they want me away from Damon and Stefan because they're afraid I'll break the bond? That the Corral bloodline won't be pure anymore?" I asked, looking up to Axel, he nodded, smirking. "Which means that Aurelia was never allowed to love you too." I said, it dawning on me.

It all made sense now.

How come I never saw this before?

"Aurelia... she was a special human, much like you." Axel said, capturing my attention again. His face looked soft when he talked about her, he still loved her, didn't he? "There was no lies, she told me the problem, but she promised it would work. That's when she told me about you." He said, and I smiled sadly.

"What happened to her?" I asked, but he shook his head.

"Dunno," I frowned. "She disappeared the same night she told me, and never came back." He said, chugging some more liquor from the bottle.

"What about you?" I asked, to which he glanced at me. "When were you a human?" I asked, and he chuckled.

"December 5th," He began, looking at me lazily. "1392."

Whoa.

My heart skipped a beat.

So old.

It made a lot more questions pop into my head then, about Axel, about how the world must have changed before his eyes. I wondered what it felt like, to watch the world crumble as you stood there, ageless.

My heart felt hollow at that.

Axel glanced to his phone then, rolled his eyes, and tossed it to me. I frowned, but then read it.

_Something came up. Home. Now._

Damon.

Oh right, my phone's broken after I made somebody eat it...oops.

"I..." My voice trailed off as I looked back up at Axel, but he just nodded in understanding. Without a word, I smiled and gave a small waved before standing up and walking to the door.

"Ash," Axel called, and I paused, waiting for him to say anything as I looked up to him. "I never wanted you to be upset. Can you forgive me?" He asked, but I just snorted.

"You were already forgiven Axel." I said with a smile before I walked out of the door.

* * *

"What's going on?" I asked, walking into the boarding house. I glanced at Stefan, my body tense for a second when he eyed me, but he shook his head so I calmed a little bit before looking to Elena and Bonnie. The Gilbert had a frown on her face, and I gulped a little bit.

"Isobel contacted me today," She said, my eyes widened. "She wants to Gilbert device, one that's meant to harm vampires." She said, making me frown.

"I took care of it." Bonnie said quickly, making me smile at her. However the frown was still on Elena's face.

"So why are you guys all so down? Shouldn't you be a bit happier? I mean if this thing doesn't work-"

"She wants to see you Lani." Damon said, walking into the room. I frowned at that, nervous. "And... she took Elena's baby bro..." He added in a not so interested tone.

"We want to know why she wants to talk to you." Elena said, so I nodded before going to the bourbon. Looking at the bottle and glass in each hand, I tossed the glass and popped the lid to the bottle, taking a huge chug. When I was done, I gave a sigh and turned to the group.

"Why don't we start with how she's working with Predators? The natural enemies to vampires? How about add in she wanted to trade me away to some guy who I've never heard of before? Toss in I just got stabbed by Maria- my supposedly dead best friend- last night before they kidnapped me." I said, frowning. Out of all of them, Damon seemed the most surprised.

"Maria as in sexy blonde best friend with a beauty complex?" He asked, and I narrowed my eyes at him. He held his hands up in mock surrender, despite the fact that he walked up to me and took the bourbon. He placed it down, looking all over me, before turning away.

"Who's Maria?" Elena asked, confused. I sighed.

"Maria was the reason I came to Mystic Falls. She wanted to be a teacher here, but then I discovered her mangled body one day. Damon decided it'd be too dangerous leaving me there so I shanghaied here." I said, trying to grab the bottle again but Damon slapped my hand away. I went to glare at him, but he glared back, waggling his finger at me, making me roll my eyes and walk away.

"Did you just say she's why you're here?" Stefan asked, and I nodded. "And now she's a vampire. And Isobel, who is looking for you, is here as well." Stefan said, and it was as though it clicked.

Oh.

"Well great," I said, throwing my arms out before slapping them down to my sides with a frown. "Fabulous, apparently I can't make friends worth shit." I muttered, turning to see Damon raising his brows. "You're an asshole, and you need me to stay alive...ish..."

He shrugged, because we both knew I needed him about as much.

"What do you mean?" Bonnie asked, and I turned to her. Elena answered for me though.

"Stefan's saying Maria was a pawn being used by Isobel." Elena said, but I shook my head.

"Mm Mm," I said, furrowing my brow. "I doubt that Isobel is calling the shots." I said, turning to look at Damon again. He nodded, looking down at me with solemn eyes as I answered what he was thinking.

"Katherine."

* * *

"This was a bad idea." I said, looking around the town square.

Nobody was outside right now, just me and Elena. She looked at me, smiling sadly.

"You should've hid away." Elena said, and I gave her a look.

"Me? You should've been running for the hills babes." I said, but she just sucked in a breath before wrapping her arms around herself. "In all honesty, I should be the one handing over the device, you don't have to get involved." I said, but Elena shook her head.

"No, it's my mother, I should be involved." She insisted, and I pinched the bridge of my nose. Somehow I could see Damon and Stefan doing something similar right now. We waited for about twenty minutes before she showed up, and I recognized her perfectly even as she suddenly whooshed behind us.

"Where's the Gilbert Device." She said in that flat tone that made me want to cringe. I snorted though and shook my head.

"Where's my brother?" Elena asked, and I glanced behind us as a male and female came up behind us.

"Call home." Isobel said vaguely, and I saw her glance behind herself to see Damon and Stefan. Then she turned back to me and smirked. "Hello Ashlan." She said in a cruelly smooth tone as Elena turned away to call Jeremy.

"Great to see you too," I said, furrowing my brow as I faked an excited tone. "You know I've always wanted to meet the bitch who plotted my demise in an attempt to sell me." I said, before dropping it into a glare.

"Hmm, I always wondered why Maria actually liked you," She said, tilting her head to the side before shaking it. "But I still can't fathom why."

"Who's Carlson?" I asked, making her head snap up straight.

"My my, weren't you being a nosy little escape artist. He's a friend, that's all you need to know." She said, but I shook my head.

"You know, this whole plan of yours, do you really think it's going to work?" I asked, to which she raised a brow. This made me smirk.

"Come on, the Gilbert Device, getting me here so you can send me out of town. I know, and trust me, I understand why." I said, smirking.

"What are you talking about?" She asked, seemingly getting annoyed with me. I snorted.

"Katherine." I said as though it were obvious. "You brought me here, so that I could be traded away, and Axel would stop hanging around Mystic Falls, so darling Katherine could come back and play some games, am I right?" I asked, Elena appearing next to me. Isobel smirked then, the most emotion I had seen on her face ever.

"You're only half way there." Isobel said, making me frown.

"What do you mean?" Elena asked, to which Isobel looked to her.

"Katherine doesn't like to share," Isobel said, and in the back of my mind I recalled both brothers telling me this before. "She never got her revenge on Madison, so she'll do it with the next best thing." She said as though it were obvious. My chest clenched, and I could feel Elena gripping my shoulder.

"What does she plan to do?" Elena asked for me, because I'm not sure I wanted to hear the answer.

"Kill you of course," She said, looking me dead in the eye. "It was her greatest fantasy to kill Madison in front of the brothers, but she'll make do with the next best thing." She said, and I couldn't help the inhumane _growl_ that came from me.

All of this, all of these people were dying, getting hurt, and for what? Because Katherine wanted to play games? I refused to run from this whiny little bitch. Even if Maria wasn't my friend, even if I had only been a toy for Damon before, even if I would only be Madison's double to everyone.

I refused to back down.

Instead, I found myself walking forward until I was barely inches from her. Looking her up and down, I watched her stair into my eyes as I glared.

"You don't have to tie me up to make me see Katherine." I began, my whole body tense with rage. "I've got a few things I want to tell that little bitch anyways." I added, my breath getting heavier and heavier. "So the next time you or her decide to piss me off, let her know I won't run. I'm ready to beat her down into an early grave. She wants to kill me? Fine, but she's going to have to work for it." I spat, but she chuckled.

"Don't kill the messenger." She said, and I felt like my every pore was screaming to break her stupid neck.

"Oh I believe that killing the messenger sends the message _loud_ and _clear_." I growled into her ear before walking past her. I stopped as I noticed she was talking to Elena, who kept glancing at me and the brothers. It was only a few minutes later that she walked away from her, and towards us.

"She's such a..." Elena didn't seem to have any words for it though, I shrugged.

"Psychotic off her meds?" I asked, but Elena couldn't even laugh as Stefan held her. I glanced at Damon, but he seemed troubled by something.

"Damon?" I asked, he looked up to me, and I saw that he was forcing a smile. I didn't push though, I didn't want him to feel worried. Instead of comforting him with words though, I smiled and hugged him. An arm slipped around me, but then we parted.

He already knew.

I never blamed him for anything that happened.

* * *

**Whew!  
**

**Heh, I decided to throw this one out there- did you know there's only 2 chapters left? Go figure! I shortened the story a bit because I hate dragging things out. And I finally figured out the most epic ending! You guys might love me, might hate me, buuuut you won't know until later!  
**

**So yeah, Lani ain't running worth shit. I was thinking a lot and I think I might go back and double check some of the plot. Since I'm trying to blend my plot and the original together I just want to make sure they fit well and... yeah... I also figured I should make sure nothing is rushed over overly dumb... I think that's it... I hope that last chapter wasn't too different...? It was well... the beginning of the end for Lani and Damon... hehehee...  
**

**Kay I'm going to bed, I'm exhausted!  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: What do you think of this story? Is it a cluster fuck or what? I love that BTW... cluster fuck... hahahaha. Fav scenes?  
**


	31. The Birthday Presents I Didn't Want

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** ''Running Up That Hill"- _Placebo_  
_

_**Chapter** 31  
_

_"The Birthday Presents I Didn't Want"_

* * *

_I woke up this morning feeling different. _

_Despite the impending doom, the obvious issues that should be up front in my mind and in dire need of attention, I felt light hearted and... happy. _

_He had fallen asleep with his head on my stomach, and when I awoke he was still there. For a while I just watched him, smiled at him, played with the short locks of black mane. Then he did something that just made me know. _

_"Good morning Lani." He said. _

_He said Lani, he knew it was me. _

_There was no sound of Madison, not a word spoken of her. That made my heart flutter, and I felt so cheesy, but I knew right then. I knew that Madison was right, what's lost can be found again. I found the key to the door Damon had made, the lock he tried so hard to keep there, but the frame burst forth, and I knew. Right then and there I knew for sure I loved him more than anything, than breathing. _

_He was mine. _

_When he kissed my stomach, I knew he had a wish, I knew he wasn't thinking of Madison, but his unborn child that would never breathe. There was a pang in my gut when I remembered what he told me, that vampires cannot pro-create. I knew then that he had that one regret, that he never had a child to watch grow, never would he get that chance again. _

_I smiled, and I sat up to kiss him. Maybe he already knew that I loved him, but I knew there was nobody else. Did he love me? Didn't matter, I loved him regardless. _

_When he went to the shower I began to write, but I've never written like this in my journal before. _

_I must be in pretty deep. _

_Wow. _

_The things love can make us do. _

_If you think about it, the average human can become an extraordinary creature just by adding this one element. I suppose you have to be pretty amazing to truly understand and accept that you love someone. Once you do, you can understand that one day it won't be there, for whatever reason, and only then can you truly appreciate it for what it is. _

_One day, Damon and I will be separated, one day I will grow old and die, Damon will be forced to move on. I have accepted this, and it is because I have that I can truly love Damon for who and what he is. So until that day comes, I am going to love him for all that he is, no matter what. _

_Now, how to say_ I love you...

* * *

"Hmm."

Stefan looked up to me and smiled.

While Damon was in the shower, I had decided to slip downstairs and get some coffee. Once there, I ran into Stefan who was sitting at the counter, smiling.

"Hey." He said, and I raised a brow. "I'm not, going to, bite you." He said calmly, making me smile and stride in confidently. As I poured myself some coffee, I spoke with him.

"I heard, Damon told me about the great detox. Apparently Elena cured you of everything fun and exciting. Back to the brooding forehead I assume?" I asked, mimicking the look mentioned. Stefan chuckled, nursing his coffee cup.

"Yeah, and Ash," He began, making me turn to look at him. "Thank you, for trying. I really m sorry I bit you." He said, but I just shrugged.

"Hey," I began, smiling smugly. "If I can put up with the Psycho-Neurotic hot stud muffin with a god complex and obsession with blondes and biting brother, I can handle a gimmick or two from you." I said, and Stefan gave a laugh. He took a sip from his coffee as I sat down across the counter from him, grinning.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" He asked, but I shook my head.

"I feel, I feel like I should be upset- about Maria, and Katherine and Isobel. I feel like, it's my fault that a lot of this happened. And I also feel like I should be worried that Damon is going to leave me to find Madison." I said, biting my lip, but when Stefan frowned I chuckled.

"Yet," I began again, making him look at me in the eye. "I also know that I can't hold myself responsible for another person's actions. At some point, you just have to say 'fuck it'." I said, sipping my coffee. Stefan rose his eyebrows at me. "I don't care what Maria does, because she was never my friend. I don't care about Katherine or Isobel, because honestly when they come back, I'll put a stake through their heart, problem solved. And as for Damon," I snorted, looking at the counter. "Madison has forever, if she's still around. If she really wanted Damon, she'd be here for him."

I looked Stefan in the eye and said with a dead serious look.

"Damon is mine, and I refuse to let go." I said, before shrugging. "What happens after I'm dead an gone is completely up to him." I muttered, chugging my coffee. The look Stefan was giving me, it wasn't one you give to a friend. It was the kind of look you gave to a sibling, the whole 'you silly girl, I love you' kind of look I've seen Jeremy give Elena before.

"What on earth could my baby brother and girlfriend be talking about?" Damon asked as he walked into the room. He grabbed himself a cup of coffee, and I just grinned.

Like he couldn't hear.

"About how terrible you are to me, I think I might have to become a nun." I said, Stefan chuckling. Damon raised a brow at me, so I raised two.

"Yeah, I'm the mean one." He said in a sarcastic tone, I smiled as he sat next to me.

"So," I began, ready to tackle the day. "Up for yet another official gathering in this never ending town?" I asked, and both brothers either grinned or smirked. We all clinked our glasses together, before taking a sip.

* * *

"So what does the lady of the evening suggest we do?" Damon asked as we walked through the town. I giggled intrigued by his behavior.

"I'm a lady now? Intriguing, are you my escort, Mister Salvatore?" I asked, and he looked down at me with a smirk. We looked around, and I could see Elena and Jeremy talking, only Jeremy looked upset. My brow furrowed, and I glanced up to Damon only to notice he was staring intently at them.

"Why are they fighting?" I asked, he snorted.

"A while back I killed his girlfriend, Elena asked me to erase his memories. Unfortunately our darling friend Anna told him the truth about vampires, he read her journal, and here we are." He said quickly, I nodded and looked over to them. Elena looked to us, but just rolled her eyes and walked away. This made me frown, was she mad at me? Or us? Or Damon?

"What was that?" I asked, to which Damon chuckled.

"Stefan is worried I'm going to steal his girl." He said smoothly, and I looked up to him with a curious expression.

"Well are you?" I asked, and he frowned down to me.

"Steal his girl? As much fun as that would be..." He teased with a smirk, but I shook my head.

"Are you in love with Elena?" I asked, there was no jealousy or anger, or even envy behind my words. There was only curiosity- did he love Elena? Did he love her more than me, or less? Did he love her at all? I couldn't insinuate all of this, it wouldn't be good for us.

"Love is a strong word," He began teasing, but when he saw the flat line of my lips he mimicked me. "No Lani, I think of Elena as my friend. That's all, but playing with Stefan's mind? Sometimes I just can't resist." He said, and I nodded. When he noticed I was still quiet, he put a hand under me chin and raised my head to his.

"I'm not going anywhere." He said confidently, and I smiled.

"I know," I said, making his brow furrow. "I'm just in shock you have a friend."

"And I'm still the mean one." He teased, his traditional grin on his face. We walked around town for a bit, watched the parade even. Damon giving flirty looks to Elena, but I pretended not to notice.

There would be no games between us, but that didn't mean everyone else wasn't a prime target. Glancing to my right, I noticed Axel a ways into the crowd. Looking back at Damon, I saw he knew too. He nodded at me, and I smiled before kissing his cheek and flowing through the crowd. When I made my way up to him, he just stood there.

"Hey."

Was all I could say.

He finally looked down at me, a smile on his lips.

"Hey babes, how you feeling?" He asked, making me grin. We were back to friends, the day just got a little bit lighter for me then.

"I feel... like my whole world is in utter chaos," I said, making him raise a brow. "But I don't care, I feel awesome Axel." I added, and he smiled sadly.

"I guess I have him to thank for that, huh?" He said, looking over to Damon. He was still giving Elena flirty looks as she went by on the float. I chuckled, Axel turning my head to face me.

"Axel?" I asked, but he grinned.

"He's such a tease isn't he." He said, but then he sighed. "But I know he'd never hurt you Ashi, and I'm happy you're happy, and I know you would never want to hurt me either, but I'll be here to protect you, make sure nothing falls apart." He said, before leaning in to kiss my cheek. "I guess I should be looking at you as my little sister now, huh?" He laughed, but I rolled my eyes.

"Big brothers don't date their little sisters at one point." I challenged, but he shrugged. "I better get back." I said, glancing at Damon as he made his way over to Bonnie. They seemed to be talking, so I took a step towards them.

"Ashi," Axel said, and I turned back to get another kiss on my other cheek. He pulled away and grinned. "Happy birthday." He said, making me beam.

He remembered.

When I made my way back to Damon, I only caught the tail end of the conversation.

"... So thank you." He said, but then he turned around to see me. I smiled, offering him my hand as I glanced to Bonnie.

"We both owe you something." I said, grinning. Bonnie smiled at us, Damon taking my hand, and we walked away.

* * *

I was sitting at the bar, enjoying a drink as I let Damon wander off to talk to Stefan, when I noticed Jeremy stormed in. Frowning, I walked up to him and raised a brow.

"Jeremy? What's with the look?" I asked, but he just sat at a table and frowned. "Was it about what Elena did?" I added, and he looked up to me with narrowed eyes.

"What, you knew too?" He snapped, and I rolled my eyes before taking a seat.

"Okay, look I've heard you have been snapping at everybody these past few days, you've even been bitchy at school. I get it, she crossed a line. Now get over it." I said, but he shook his head.

"She took my memories away." He insisted, making me snort.

"Trust me, your memories? I'm sure you would do the same if the roles were reversed." I said with a chuckle, making him frown.

"You think this is funny? What about you and Damon? How do you know he's not lying to you? What if he's erasing your memories all the time?" He countered, but I just rolled my eyes.

"It's no different," I said, pursing my lips. "Damon knows that there are things that are hard to handle. If he took something, I know it wasn't anything valuable. He was trying to protect me, make me... less hurt."

"But see what I don't get is why everybody's trying to make me feel better about it. I can't remember, nothing at all about Vicki and the fact that she's dead. Explain to me how I can move on knowing my sister stole my memories of Vicki." He challenged, but I shook my head.

"If she took everything, you would never remember Vicki, you probably wouldn't care she was dead." I said, my face turning into a serious one next. "But tell me this Jeremy, had you remembered about Vicki, tell me, what would you have done?" I asked, he looked to the table. "Because I know," I began again, gulping when he looked back up to me. "I know when my best friend died, I would've probably done the same thing. I felt empty, like I had nothing."

"So how did you fix that?" He asked, but I just smiled.

"I listened to Buddha, I accepted the fact that she's gone, and then I detached myself. By doing that, I had room to grow. I had people I could meet, and I changed, but for the better. I'm happy because I didn't stay mad, at Damon or anybody here. I feel whole, today especially." I said, feeling like I said. He looked to the table again, but I just smiled and patted his shoulder.

"One day you'll meet somebody, and they will take up so much room, you won't remember that hollow feeling." I said, before standing up and walking out. When I did, Damon instantly grabbed me and we were suddenly walking really fast towards my car.

"Damon, what-"

"Tomb vampires and Predators have teamed up." He said quickly. "Get your vervain, we're going to need it." He added, shoving me towards my car. I looked back, but he was already running off somewhere else.

Fuck.

I ran to my car, it was at the far side of the street and out of sight, so I popped the trunk and went to grab some vervain.

Then it happened.

My skin crawl as this unrealistic howl broke through to me. It scared me at first, but then it got louder and louder. Eventually it was so loud that I had to cover my ears, it hurt so bad I let out a scream. What was happening? Why was it happening?

It got so loud that it felt like needles were stabbing my skull.

Then it stopped, and I let out a breath as it all stopped hurting after a minute. I leaned against the car, my labored breaths were loud compared to-

Wait a second.

"Hey." I said, but I couldn't hear it. "Hey!" I shouted, but I couldn't hear that either. Holding my hand up to my ear, my fingers met a liquid, and when I pulled back I saw it was crimson.

Oh no.

What was that?

Screw the vervain, I looked around, finding a couple other people on the ground, but not everyone was effected. That's when I figured it out.

The Gilbert Device.

Bonnie you-

Smoke.

I could smell smoke, so I looked around for the source. There was a building that had smoke coming out, but no flames. It must've been where they rounded up the vampires and were going to burn them alive. My heart raced.

Damon... are you in there?

Axel...?

Oh god no.

I slammed into the door, wedging it open, and then raced to the stairs. They were on fire, and I had to back away for a second. There had to be a way to get down...

Ah.

Grabbing the door, I began to tug it off of it's hinges. I had to break it off, or I couldn't get down there. It wouldn't budge though, tears began to pour down my face. This had to work!

Damon...!

With one massive tug, it came right out of the wall, and I laid it down before kneeling on it. With one last breath of clean air, I pushed it and myself down the stairs. With the door blocking the fire, I was able to get down to the bottom. I rolled off just before the door hit a beam that was on fire, landing right on top of a body.

Anna.

Without taking another glance I looked around. Damon had to be nearby, but where?

"Damon!" I called through the flames, but it was only when somebody rolled over that I saw. He was there, lying on the ground. He rolled over to look at me, he looked like he was in pain.

A wall of flames separated us.

I prayed to god, and I ran at the wall. When I landed I tucked and rolled, stopping next to him. I peeled off my heavy jacket, the back on fire, and tossed it down. He looked up to me, but I just held out my wrist. He frowned, shaking his head, so I smacked him.

"You fucking drink." I spat, and he said something, but I tapped my bloody ear. He furrowed his brow some more, but I held out my wrist again and he drank. While he drank, I looked around, trying to find Axel. He had to be around here, somewhere, but when I saw him, I wished I hadn't.

My heart stopped when I saw the piece of wood lodged into his chest.

He was lying behind another wall of fire, my chest tightened when I noticed his skin was grey. His eyes were dead, and he wasn't moving.

No...

Damon was up then, but I couldn't stop staring. He shook me, but I pushed him away as I tried to crawl closer.

"No..!" I begged, Damon grabbing my around my waist. There was no competition, I had been over powered right away.

"No!" I cried, tears freely pouring from my eyes. This had to be a mistake! That's not Axel! I-It's just some asshole who looks like him.

Damon drug me to the stairs, then he jumped and we were at the top, but I couldn't look away.

"NO!" I screamed, Damon tearing me away from the fires as he pulled me outside. Falling to the steps, I sat there, completely still. Damon held out his wrist, and I numbly drank at it. My ears popping a bit before I could hear perfectly again. Then he pulled his wrist away, and we sat there, apart. He didn't say anything, but he didn't leave.

I just sat there in shock.

"_I know he'd never hurt you Ashi, and I'm happy you're happy_."

Axel... I...

Damon looked over to me, but I just stared at the ground before putting my head in my hands.

"_I know you would never want to hurt me either_."

"Damon! Ash!"

We both looked up as Elena, Stefan, and Bonnie all ran towards us. My heart felt like it broke again when I looked at Bonnie. She stopped short of everyone else as Damon stepped in front of Stefan and Elena. They looked at him, confused as he pushed them to back off. Bonnie looked at me, no expression on her face.

"Are you happy?" I spat at her, but she didn't say a single word.

"You got Damon out." She said softly, having a sense of victory about her, but my body was so tense right then... I wanted to kill her, I wanted to so, so badly.

"What about Axel?" I asked, and the sense dropped, her eyes widening a bit. "You know I trusted that you wouldn't do something like this, and I can understand if you didn't actually fix anything, but why wouldn't you just let me get them away?" I asked, my voice cracking.

"Ash-" Elena began, but I shook my head.

"Axel died because you couldn't fess up." I whispered, tears springing from my eyes. "I trusted you." I whispered, taking a step towards me. She touched my shoulder.

"Ash, she never meant to-"

"Yes she did! She did Elena! What if it was Stefan or Damon dead?! Would you be on her side?!" I screeched, this time Stefan coming to try and comfort me, but I pushed them both back.

"I trusted you," I growled, then I lunged at her. I didn't have a plan, just rage. I wanted to kill her so, so badly...! My chance was taken from me though as Damon wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me against him.

"_But I'll be here to protect you, make sure nothing falls apart_."

"I TRUSTED YOU!" I cried, everything just coming out.

"_I guess I should be looking at you as my little sister now, huh_?"

Damon pulled me to his chest, and I cried, I cried to so hard that I didn't even realize he had picked me up and taken me away. It was only once we were at the boarding house that I realized anything had happened at all.

He sat me on the couch, and he sat down next to me, and we stayed like that for the whole night.

Not once did he mock me for crying.

* * *

I woke up in Damon's arms.

He was looking down at me as I nuzzled to him, the bed sheet entwined around our bodies. I inhaled deeply to catch his scent- like the deep woods and spring water- before I let my eyes close for a moment.

"What are you doing?" He asked lazily, making me chuckle.

"Imprinting this moment." I whispered. "Pretending nothing bad happened, that everything is fine." I whispered again, no smile on my face. Damon brushed my hair out of my face, looking me over a few times.

"I wanted to save him," He began, making me look up at him. "But someone had already staked him by the time I could move."

"I never blamed you Damon, I never could." I said softly, shuffling closer to him. He tucked my head under his, his arms circling tighter around me. I let out a sigh, playing with the buttons of his shirt. There was a moment where I felt I needed to say something- it was on the tip of my tongue- but it flitted away shortly after.

Probably wasn't important.

"I'm sorry Lani," Damon said, making me purse my lips even if he couldn't see. "You don't deserve this."

"Ah, well I'm not a very good person Damon," I said, drawing shapes on his chest once the buttons came undone. "I'm probably paying for it."

Damon snorted at though I had told a joke, but my voice had been clear and hollow ever since I awoke.

"You say this while lying next to me." He said with a small chuckle, and I couldn't help but feel a warmth spread through me.

"I am, aren't I?" I began, a lump in my throat.

What if Damon had been the one to die down there? My body fell tense to that thought.

"Lani?" Damon asked, probably feeling my muscles clench, but I just nuzzled further into his neck. Trying to escape the feelings that surfaced when I thought of Damon, lying there with a stake in his chest. Damon, the one that would never return to me. When I saw it like that...

I'm sorry Axel, you deserved so much better but...

"I'm a very selfish person," I said, sitting up and lying over top him as I tried to inhale his scent again. "I'm mean and a total bitch, because..." I pulled up, and looked him in the eye. He had the same intense look I had before.

"But...?" He whispered, his hand touching my face. I looked at it, before looking back to him.

"If you had died..." My voice couldn't even finish the sentence as I shook my head. "I-I wouldn't..."

He shushed me before I could finish, sitting up to hold me close to him. My arms wrapped around him as the painfully familiar feeling of dread wrapped around me too. I almost lost Damon today, a chance that was far too close. What would've happened if I hadn't been there. My lips found the skin of his neck, and I left soft kisses all the way down to the collar of his shirt before kissing back up.

"Lani you don't-"

"I wouldn't be the same Damon." I said, cutting him off. His stare was so intense, I gulped before spitting the words out.

"I love you Damon," I said, this time he gulped, but the word vomit didn't stop. "A-and no matter what you say next, I will still love you. I-I can't explain it, but I don't feel as close to anybody else as I do you so I love you and-"

He cut me off, his lips pressing to mine. My breath caught and I found myself desperately pressing back against him. It wasn't like most of his kisses that sent me under, this one was, by all means, sweet and tender. When he pulled away, he only pulled a few inches from me, both of us looking at each other through half lidded eyes.

"You told me about Madison," He began, my heartbeat picking up. "And I thought, maybe there's an out, maybe this isn't going to be what I want." He whispered, making me look down and purse my lips.

"Hmm." I said softly, but he continued.

"But when I saw you, running through that fire. I realized it," He said, making me look back into those beautiful blue orbs. They were like blue flames, so hot and intense. "Somewhere, somehow, along the way, you decided my life is worth something." He said, one of his hands pressing into the small of my back, drawing me closer.

"But...?" I added, waiting for the final knock out, but he just chuckled.

"But nothing," He said, making my frown. "_Fuck_ Madison, _fuck_ Katherine." He said, his face getting closer to mine. "You're all I ever wanted."

I pressed forward, closing the gap. Somehow, even when I felt like a lifeless zombie, Damon always knew the exact words to say to make me feel alive again. His hands brushed through my hair as our faces molded together, I let out a sigh as he kissed my neck.

"Happy birthday." He whispered, and I glanced at the clock- 11:59- and chuckled as he bit softly on my neck.

"Better late than never." I teased, to which he didn't reply. Instead he tossed me backwards, climbing on top of me. His kisses were hot a fiery now, making me make noises I still wasn't used to whenever he bit down. He tore at my shirt, peeling all my layers off down to my bra. When I went to pull his though, he pushed my hands away.

"Birthday girl gets a special present." He teased, and I gasped as he tore off my jeans and nibbled on my hip. He tore off my panties in the process, but that little gasp was nothing compared to the high pitched whine that broke from my lips when his head went between my legs.

"D-Damon!" I gasped, moaning when he did things to me I had never felt. My fingers locked into his hair, and it was only five minutes later- when he looked back up at me, that I looked down at him.

Something caught my eye.

I frowned, noticing the abnormally colored skin beneath his shirt. He too seemed to notice my eyes roaming, and quickly tried to cover it up. He came up to kiss my lips, but I didn't kiss him back this time.

"Dam-" He cut me off with a kiss.

"Damon!" I shouted after the fifth time. It was then that he realized it was fruitless, pointless even. The look in his face- I remembered that pained expression all too well.

"What happened?" I asked, but he refused to move or let me see. "Damon what's going on?!" I demanded, feeling frantic. Vampires weren't supposed to have wounds right?

Especially not grey skin.

Unless.

"No..." I whispered, shoving out from under him, my fingers shook as I peeled off his long sleeved shirt- he'd been wearing them for so long I hadn't thought anything of it- but now I realized why. From his left arm all the way down his back on the left side of my body was grey. The flesh was peeling back, cracking and oozing.

It was dead.

* * *

**Whew!  
**

**Okay guys! Second last chapter! So I bet I just ruined somebody's day huh?  
**

**I really hope everybody reviews! According to stats I have 200 readers so... 200 reviews would burst my circuits! I might put the next chapter up tonight if people review...  
**

**The last chapter of this story...  
**

**So Damon's got something wrong with him... wonder what it is...?  
**

**Uhm before anybody says anything, I do realize he kind of uhm... well I know about the season 2 finale, but IDK if that finale is making it in my story... so i figured... great, this is a good reason to encourage Lani to do something heroic!  
**

**So yeah, now you know why it's the beginning of the end of these too!  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: Which is your fav chapter thus far?  
**


	32. It's a Shame To Say Goodbye

**Play Your Game**

_A Vampire Diaries Fanfic._

**_Damon Salvatore x Ashlan Corral_**

_'For those who think Life has ended before it's truly begun.'_

* * *

_**Song:** ''The Scientist"- Coldplay__  
_

_**Chapter** 32  
_

_"It's a Shame To Say Goodbye"_

* * *

"No..." I whispered, shoving out from under him, my fingers shook as I peeled off his long sleeved shirt- he'd been wearing them for so long I hadn't thought anything of it- but now I realized why. From his left arm all the way down his back on the left side of my body was grey. The flesh was peeling back, cracking and oozing.

It was dead.

"Wh-When did this start?!" I asked, looking up at him as he sat on the bed. Damon frowned though, shrugging. I tried not to see the way the skin moved when he did so.

"When that predator bit me." He said, as though brushing it off.

My heart stopped.

The natural enemy to vampires.

Oh my god.

"Elena!" I called as I pulled on some pants before heading to the door to look down the hallway frantically. "Stefan!" I screeched. Damon rolled his eyes, standing up and looking at me. The younger brother appeared in the doorway, looking around frantically.

"G-Get some towels, a-and some Vaseline. Hurry!" I said, and he looked at Damon with a sad expression- he knew?!- but he dove down the hall before I could say anything. Elena came running up to me, but when she saw my face, she frowned and looked to Damon.

That's when she too saw the grey oozing skin.

"Elena," I began, my throat feeling dry. "Go get Bonnie." I said.

"Lani you're overreacting." Damon said, rolling his eyes as he walked forward. My own grey orbs widened so much that it hurt.

"Overreacting?!" I screeched. "Sit down before I show you fucking overreacting!"

He rolled his eyes before tenderly sitting down on the bed. My head snapped to Elena, my eyes wide with frustration that she was still standing there.

"Go get Bonnie!" I screamed, and she ran down the hall.

"You don't have to be so mean." Damon teased, making my neck crank back towards him. Taking the few steps towards the bed and swung my fist so hard his whole body shifted with the force.

"How can you sit there like that?! Are you mad?! Why didn't you fucking say something?!" I screamed, but when he looked back at me, he looked completely upset and frustrated.

"Because you would do this." He said, making my hands tremble as I fell to my knees in front of him. He just watched me as I completely broke down in front of him.

"It can't be you," I choked. "Anybody but you...!" I cried, shaking my head before resting it on his knee. I felt his fingers brush through my hair- even now he was trying to sooth me- I felt awful.

"It's getting better Lani," He said, but I was too scared to look up at him. "I'll get better for you." He said.

He didn't though.

* * *

"Easy." I whispered, resting my head on top of his.

Damon pulled his lips away from my wrist, resting back against me as I held him. After his body rejected human blood and animal blood, I had offered my own arm. He was able to keep it down, and it appeared as though my blood was like morphine- it took the pain away.

For now.

Each day, I coated his back with Vaseline, gave him some blood, and put wet towels beneath him to keep his skin from cracking and peeling away.

"Ash," Elena called from the doorway. I ignored her for a moment, running my hands through Damon's hair. He'd gotten so weak I even had to cut my own wrist so he could feed. He had gone down fast, after trying to shower and falling over on me, I refused to leave his side for more than a few minutes.

"Ashlan." Stefan said firmly, snapping me from my thoughts. I stopped stroking Damon's hair and looked to the door. A third figure stood there, the look on her face was blank.

Bonnie.

I had asked Elena to get her before, but it appeared I wasn't worth the visit until now. Still, this chance was the only one I would have, so I carefully pulled out from Damon, made sure he was tucked in- he was actually feeling cold, a very bad sign- before kissing his forehead and walking to the door. Elena motioned for the stairs, and I walked down first.

At the bottom step, I swayed a bit, but Stefan caught me.

"You shouldn't offer so much blood." Bonnie said, and I bit back quite the array of swears for her.

"It takes his pain away, I'd give it all if I could." I said, looking at her dead in the eye.

She looked away.

"Look," I began, never once looking away from her. "I'm not sorry for what I said, because I'm sure you'd feel the same if it were Elena and I was in your place." I said, and she finally looked up to me. "Having said that, I'm willing to take back everything, if you can help him."

"What makes you think I want anything from you? Why would I help Damon?" She asked, narrowing her eyes. Elena and Stefan frowned at her.

"Bonnie-" Elena began, but I cut her off.

"I will do anything for Damon. I'll get on my hands and knees and beg you Bonnie." I said, my facade breaking as the pleading look broke through.

"Please." I begged.

"Me too." Stefan added as he stood next to me. Bonnie looked to Elena as she too flanked me.

"Come on Bonnie, there has to be something." Elena said, but Bonnie just pursed her lips.

"I'm sorry," She said, looking upset. "I looked, all day for the past few days," She shook her head though. "I couldn't find anything about a cure for a predator bite." She said.

My chest broke then. I nodded though, trying to keep my breathing under control as Stefan hugged Elena, and slowly walked up stairs.

"Ash," Bonnie said, and I glanced back at her. "I really am sorry."

No you're not.

I didn't respond though, I just kept on walking up the stairs, and went to Damon's room. My hands ghosted over his face as I slid in beneath him again. Still, I refused to cry.

"I told you not to look so sad." He said, his voice barely a whisper. I bit back a sob, leaning away from his face as I leaned against the head board.

"I'm not crying." I said in the softest voice I could muster. "I'm just thinking so hard my sense are going into overdrive." I muttered, and in truth I was keeping the tears back pretty well. It was silent for a moment, my fingers playing with the short midnight black locks as I thought.

"Tell me about your life in 1864." I said suddenly, Damon coughing a little before he leaned into me a bit more. I frowned, but kept my face from his view.

"What do you want to know?" He asked, but I shook my head and pursed my lips.

"Anything, what was school like?"

"Boring."

"Home life?"

"Boring."

"Was there anything that wasn't?" I asked, Damon sighed.

"Madison wasn't boring." He said, making me bite my lip. Anything out of his throat was okay to hear now, anything that would make him talk...

"Tell me, why did you fall for her in the first place? What drew you in?" I asked, to which Damon didn't answer at first. Still, I stayed quiet, waiting for him to speak.

"Her eyes," He said softly, reaching up to grab my hand. We laced our fingers together, my other hand started to brush the side of his face. "She had my mother's eyes."

"What else?" I asked, trying to keep him talking.

"She... knew how to... have fun and...laugh... I've never seen such... a beautiful smile." He said, and I forced back some tears. I take it back, I didn't want to hear about her, Madison, not now and not ever.

"She must've been very pretty, your mother I mean."

"Hmm," He sounded half asleep, and I gulped in fear his time was soon. "And kind, she was everything to me... The she died after Stefan was born... But I never blamed him..." He said, softly kissing my bloody wrist.

"Did you want more?" I asked, but he made a noise of rejection.

"You're a nice person Lani," He said, but I couldn't tell him the truth. "I wish I had met you sooner." He said, making me bite back a sniffle.

"I wish I knew you in 1864," I said honestly, brushing his hair from his face. "I would've put a stake through Katherine's heart. I would've let you be with Madison too if it made you happy." I said, looking down at him His eyes were closed, I wanted to see those beautiful blue orbs again though.

"I would... choose you... any day..." He said, sounding faint. There was a moment of silence, before he spoke again.

"There isn't a cure... is there...?"

I couldn't answer him though, instead I leaned back against the head board, and I silently let tears fall from my face until I couldn't see anything anymore.

"No," I said in a gasping breath, but then leaned over him. "There's always a cure, we just need to find it." I said, and for the first time since we started talking he looked up to me, his blue eyes smoldered and dull.

"Don't cry for me... Lani," He whispered, his voice coming out hoarse again. "A girl like you... you'll find your dream man one day..." He said faintly, but I shook my head and leaned down to kiss him. I already found him, it's you Damon, it always was you.

"When we find the cure," I said, watching him close his eyes. "What's the first thing you want to do? Anything you want we can do it." I said, watching a weak smile tug at his lips. Thankfully, he played along with me.

"Kiss you."

"We're already doing that."

"Hmm, make love to you." He said, and I couldn't help the snort that fell out of my throat.

"What else you perv?" I teased so very softly. He thought for a moment, his hand squeezing mine less and less.

"Strip poker..." He said, and I let out a broken laugh. I hurt to laugh, knowing I was just pretending, making up stories again.

"I'd play," I said softly, caressing his cheek again. "And then we'd have to have a party. A big one with lot's of rum, scotch and bourbon." I said, trying to picture it all.

"Hmm, we... never did have...a party for you..." He said softly. "I'm sorry... you found out... too early..."

"When were you going to tell me? Never?" I asked, but not an ounce of anger was in my voice. Nobody deserved that on their death bed.

"I never... wanted to see you... cry..." He said, and I couldn't help the tears falling from my face

"I love you." I said, feeling as though I had just resigned his fate. He went to say something, but then began to cough instead.

"Ash," Stefan said, I looked at him standing in the doorway. "How is he?"

"Don't talk... like I'm... not here." Damon said wearily. Between that and my tear stained face, he knew it wasn't good.

"Why don't you go downstairs?" Stefan offered, but before I could say no, Damon interjected.

"Go Lani, I'll wait for you."

Wait for me to come back so you could die?

Oh god.

I nodded shakily, slowly creeping out from under him. Before I left though, I stopped and glanced down at him. He opened his bleary eyes to look at me, and I had to force a smile. Leaning down, I planted a delicate kiss on his lips, before kissing his forehead.

Just in case.

"I love you baby, I always did." I whispered before moving away. I met Stefan in the door- he nodded with a grim look on his face before he let me out and into the hallway. When I walked into the parlor, Elena was sitting there with Bonnie. They had been worried about everything that had happened three days ago, between Caroline going to the hospital, Damon, and myself.

Bonnie seemed upset with my desire to help Damon. It was true, he was drinking too much, but I would do anything if he felt even a little bit better. I would kill for him, I would die for him.

Anything he wanted.

My face must have been scary, because they both looked at me with such sympathy.

No...

Don't give me sympathy.

Give it to him.

"Ash..." Elena began, taking a step towards me, but I shook my head and took a step back. She stopped, frowning lightly. "Ash?" She asked, confused.

"No..." I said, shaking my head more. "No..."

I couldn't do this.

No more playing nice with everyone. There wasn't any sense in the world anymore.

"Ash-"

"No!" I shouted.

Then I ran.

Out the door and into the treeline, I ignored the road and just ran into the wilderness. My legs just kept on carrying me, for what seemed like forever.

"_Your loss, you realize you're talking to a crazy person, huh_?"

My heart pounded in my ears.

"_I know, do you have any idea who you're talking to_?"

My eyes felt blurry.

"_You can call me Damon, and what can I call you_?"

"_Ashlan._"

My chest ached, my stomach felt so heavy.

"_Aw cute, you think you've got a shot_."

"_Of course I do, have you seen me lately_?"

"_I've seen better on Care Bears_."

Why did it have to be him? It could've been anyone but him. I would get over it if it were anybody but him.

"_Don't take it personally honey, you're just the first to get away_." I said smoothly, and she looked to me with a quirked brow.

"_The first_?"

"_Yep_."

"_I deserve a ribbon_."

Why did you have to meet me? Couldn't you have just left me alone? I would've been so much better without you!

"_You know I could make you do anything right now_."

"_I trust you Damon_."

"_That's the dumbest thing that's ever come from your mouth_."

Maybe I would be much happier right now. Maybe I wouldn't feel so lost and broken right now if it wasn't for you just playing your games.

"_Would you have stopped him? If he had bitten me_?"

You bastard.

"_I was more worried about stopping myself_."

You made me fall for you.

"_We have got to stop doing that_."

"_At least you're not the one with caramel sauce all over them._"

You made me feel.

_"You know I'm not blonde, right?" _

_"I think I can make an acceptation."_

You knew my weaknesses already, didn't you?

_"What you did was incredibly stupid today."_

_"Ah, we both know you'd be lost without me."_

I fell right into your trap.

_ "Lani, would you like to live in the boarding house with me... and Stefan?" _

_"I would love to, Mister Salvatore."_

To think I thought I was special to you.

_"You're still and idiot."_

_"You're still stuck with me."_

You made me feel like nothing else mattered.

_"I couldn't tell you the last time somebody believed in me like you do."_

I broke to a walk, my legs shaking and my breath so loud I could hear it over the thrumming of my pulse in my ears.

_"Sounds good to me, see you next year?" _

_"Definitely."_

My legs brought me to Fells Church, the ruins cleared away a bit. I looked through the ruins, away from the entrance tot he tomb, behind the wall still standing.

_"You idiot! What was that phone call about? Huh? Goodbye? That's it? You gave up just like that?!" _

_"I-I thought you didn't want to see me anymore so- that hurts!"_

_"Good. Maybe it'll knock some sense into that thick skull of yours." _

In one of the holes in the rocks, was my journal, wrapped in water proof material, and shoved above the ground to protect from the winds.

_"I wanted to tell you, I can't choose you, because you are so special. I'd never want you to put up with someone like me." _

_"Damon don't-"_

_"I love you Lani."_

Flipping through the pages, I looked at all the writing, majority of this book was about my misadventures with Damon, of my thoughts on life, my thoughts on Damon.

_"You said you had an unflinching ability to listen to Taylor Swift." _

_"Only for you babe."_

I felt more tears roll down my cheeks, my breath coming out rough still as I read my old entries.

_"I can't chose you Lani, it could never be you."_

Why did you do the things you did? Say the things you said? Why couldn't you just let me go?

_"Have fun with the Pity Police? Or were you too busy offering him your blood?" _

_"Pity Police were too busy helping you with your love life, Damon."_

I read the first entry. It was the only one that had nothing to do with my life with Damon. It was when I first started this journal, the day I met him... Fuck.

_"You love me, don't you." _

_"I did."_

_"You mean you still do."_

_"I said I did, past tense."  
_

My frustration got to me then, and I took the book in both hands before tearing in opposite directions.

_"We can be like before Lani."_

_"We could never be like before."_

I screamed as I tore the book right in half, before throwing the pages everywhere. They fell like a cloud around me, and I watched in silence while they fell to the ground.

_"I want you to be greedy with me."  
_

_"That would be too cruel."  
_

Dammit, why did you have to do this to me Damon?

_"That's fine, we can be greedy with each other then."  
_

I was happy, hiding away, not knowing what it felt to be whole.

_"You really think I can make you happy?"  
_

_"I think you already know the answer Damon."_

I didn't need to know.

Yet you made me know, made me want to know.

_"No I am not jealous that you just touched that nasty bastard." _

_"Aw you're too cute."_

I looked at my hands, he had held these hands just a little while ago.

_"It's going to hurt." _

_"I trust you Damon."_

I did, with everything I had, and this happens? This sick feeling went into my gut as I held my face in my hands. This was all my fault.

_"Somewhere, somehow, along the way, you decided my life is worth something."_

A broken sob escaped my throat. Despite everything that's happened, it's going to end like this. I'm going to watch you die, and you are going to be filled with so many what ifs and...

_"Fuck Madison, fuck Katherine. You're all I ever wanted."_

There had to be an answer.

Everything has a reaction, there had to be a cure, or a way to reduce the process or- fuck _anything_ would make me feel better! That's when I remembered.

My hands shakily went to the tiny pocket watch pendant on my neck. I could still remember the day Madison gave it to me very clearly.

_"I want you to have this," She said, making me raise a brow. "It's a special necklace." She added, motioning for me to turn around and move my small strands of hair as she put it on. When I turned back around, she was smiling even more at me._

_"What is so special about it?" I asked, and she held the locket in her hands._

_"When you feel like there are no more answers in the world," She began, looking deeply into my eyes. "When you think there is no hope," She added, I wondered if my gaze was as sharp as hers was, it made me shiver. "Just open the watch, and your answers will be there." She said, smiling. I quirked a brow, but she just leaned up to kiss my forehead._

_"But how do you know?" I asked, and she smiled._

There was only one way to find out.

I held the watch up- what if it didn't work? Did it matter? It was a chance, one I was willing to pray on- and pressed the small button near the link.

It was like a recoil from there, my body was thrown backwards, but I never felt like I was falling. It was slow motion as I stared at the sky, and suddenly all these emotions came over me. These images flashed before my mind, and the only thing that was in clear view was Damon.

Suddenly I hit the ground, and my back hurt so much. When my eyes opened though, it was dark outside, and I wasn't at the church ruins anymore. This large building- a perfectly clean church- stood there, I was lying on it's steps. I winced, the back of my head hurting as I sat up. My brain felt fuzzy, and it was as though I had been swimming for a long time.

Where am I?

Who am I?

Everything hurt so much, I couldn't put my tongue on why my chest ached so much though.

Then I heard the growling.

A strange, animalistic sound.

Turning my head, I saw it, a wolf. It was glowering at me right now, and my body tensed. I winced when I felt pins and needles in my head though, the image of a woman handing me jewelery running through my mind.

_"This ring is a special ring too, my Mother made a single spell imprinted into it, anybody can use it on the supernatural. Just think about making the vessels in his head go 'pop' and it'll happen."_

So I tried.

Only it didn't work.

Either this woman lied to me...

Or this was really just a scary wolf.

It barked.

I ran.

It chased me through the forest, but my body was so sore when I tried to jump a log I just tripped and caught my foot on it. Spinning over, I tried to crab walk back as it leaped onto the log. I could feel the blood as it trickled down the side of my face, messing into my long matching hair. My nose hurt, my skull throbbed, and I knew, this was probably going to be the end.

It growled at me.

Then it jumped.

**_BANG_ **

* * *

**BAM!  
**

**The ending to this book guys!  
**

**So, how many of you get what's going on?  
**

**Hahaha I figure most of you want to strangle me now? Yeah, I know the feeling.  
**

**So... I figured making a heartfelt chapter would really bring the whole story to a close... and I feel like Lani needs to let everything out soo... here we are!  
**

**Hmm, so what's going to happen to our darling Lani? I wonder...  
**

**Oh yeah, I hope you guys used the song choice while reading this, it made me cry while I was writing it. :'( So sad.  
**

**Also, I will label this story complete, but I will add another chapter for when I start the next story! Probably sometime this week!  
**

**RATE AND REVIEW!  
**

**QUESTION OF THE DAY: What did you think of this story? What do you think is going to happen in the next story?  
**


	33. Sequel is up!

Hey guys! The sequel is up! It's called The Gamble! I hope you guys enjoy it because I spent a lot of time thinking about it really really hard! Did you know this book was about 300 pages long? Go me!

Anyways, head to the sequel!


End file.
